Columns

It comes after last week’s Cafe disclosure

The list of some thirty officers including former senior administrative officials and security personnel who were given items such as mobile phones, laptops, i-pads, iPhones and other digital gadgets for official use but failed to return them to the respective departments after they vacated their offices or were transferred to other departments.

Following the publication, some officials directly contacted the Presidential Secretariat and informed them they would soon hand over the digital gadgets that rightfully belong to the State .

Hearing the response from one time senior officials in the bureaucracy, an official was heard saying to his colleague that it seemed they had to follow it up with them to recover these items in their custody whereas an ordinary government servant cannot apply for a pension without returning all items belonging to the state. Better late than never, one might say.

Sri Lankan protesters revelling in the swimming pool of the Presidential Palace

In recent months, Sri Lanka was on the front pages of international dailies for the wrong reasons and even became a classic example of how not to run the economy of a sovereign state.

It seems Sri Lanka became a bad example of how to put down a strong public protest and show the world ‘how it’s done’ as well.

After the announcement by Iraq’s influential Shi’ite Muslim cleric Moqtada al-Sadr this week of quitting politics, his supporters took to the streets in protest and stormed the Republican Palace in Baghdad. His rival’s supporters also joined as the West Asian state which is undergoing its worst political deadlock and economic difficulties.

In what was considered as a rerun of events in Sri Lanka recently, Iraqi protesters were seen storming the Republican Palace and taking a dip in the Presidential pool – just like in Sri Lanka.

Photographs and video footage of Iraqi protesters storming into the Palace were widely circulated on the internet but international dailies and agencies made comparisons with recent Sri Lankan protests to stress that Sri Lankans did it first.

Supporters of Iraq's Shiite Muslim leader Moqtada al Sadr taking a dip in the swimming pool after they stormed the Republican Palace in Baghdad. AFP.

Caller says he wants to return Buddha statue and books taken from Ranil’s residence

In recent weeks, various special police investigation teams were deployed to probe the arson attack on the private residence of President Ranil Wickremesinghe in the heart of Colombo when anti-government protesters went berserk.

Police suspect there were some elements with personal vendettas and political agendas which led to the attack and quickly put the blame on the Galle Face protesters.

The President’s Office received a call from a concerned citizen this week. The caller insisted that he should speak with the President’s Secretary but when another senior official took the call instead, the caller informed him that a statue of the Lord Buddha and some books that were taken from the private residence of the President during the attack are now in his custody and he wanted to return them to the rightful owner.

He assured the Presidential Secretariat official that those items are kept safe and he just wanted to return them, fearing possible repercussions. The official gave him relevant directives to return them immediately.

Last week, a 33-year-old carpenter from Aranayake was taken into custody for stealing a bottle of foreign liquor from the residence of Mr. Wickremesinghe. Cheers.

Work for the people or lightning will strike our graves: Welgama

Samagi Jana Balawegaya (SJB) Parliamentarian Kumara Welgama did not mince words on Thursday when he cast blame on those who he said were responsible for dragging the country into the economic crisis.

Politicians, officials and even the public should bear responsibility for what happened, he said.

“I blame the people because they are responsible for sending people like us to Parliament. Why do they keep sending people like us here? They can change their representatives every five years, yet they don’t do that. Why? Because we have given them roofing sheets for their homes, cash and other benefits. They look at these and say they can’t forget ‘Kumara Mahaththaya,’ and must vote for him. So yes, I blame them too.”

However, now that people have sent them all to Parliament, Mr Welgama said it was incumbent on everyone in the House to work together to resolve the crisis for the sake of their children. “Otherwise, lightning will even strike our graves,” he warned.

Former MP’s social media promotion ends in disaster

Many politicians these days are trying to jump on the social media bandwagon in a bid to appeal to younger votes.

An attempt by a former parliamentarian  to appeal to a younger audience on social media ended in a disastrous fashion this week.

The incident unfolded when a Twitter user posted what many described as a “cringe inducing” video the former MP had posted on his TikTok social media channel in a bid to promote himself.

The young politician did not take kindly to the ridicule directed at him on another social media platform. He took to Twitter to spar with some of those who criticised him. It was then that users noted the videos and photographs he has ‘Liked’ through his account.

The posts users, like on Twitter, are visible to the public unless restrictions are applied. It was not long before users pointed out that many of the videos and photographs that the politician had liked were pornographic.

The politico’s Twitter account has since been deleted and he put a message on Facebook that his Twitter account was hacked and he was going to lodge a complaint to authorities!

Sumanthiran sees bad signs in President’s Sinhala signature

Criticising the government’s move to hold three young protesters in detention under the Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA), Tamil National Alliance (TNA) frontliner M.A. Sumanthiran revealed in Parliament on Thursday that President Ranil Wickremesinghe as Defence Minister had signed the Detention Orders in Sinhala rather than using his usual signature in English.

“Ordinarily, he signs in English. We are familiar with his signature. But these three detention orders he has signed in Sinhala. Is there a change in personality? Is he appealing to some sections in the country by now beginning to sign in Sinhala, and that too on Detention Orders?” he asked.

He probably wants the President to have a Tamil signature as well, like when Tamil was an official language of the pre-1815 Kandyan kingdom.

Phone and pay-TV charges to be increased from tomorrow

The Telecom-munications Regulatory Commission of Sri Lanka (TRCSL) has approved an increase in tariffs for all mobile, fixed-line, internet, supplementary services (prepaid and postpaid) and pay-TV services from tomorrow.

Accordingly, there will be a 20 percent increase in the charges for mobile calls, fixed, and broadband services. There will also be a 25 percent increase in pay-TV subscriptions.

According to the TRCSL, the Value-Added Tax (VAT) for pay-TV and telecommunications services would rise from 12 to 15 percent from this month.

The decision was made as a result of the continuous downgrading of the value of Sri Lanka rupee relative to the US dollar, which was driving up operating costs.

The TRCSL says more details have been posted on its official website.