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During its campaign, the National People’s Power (NPP) has been stressing the need to send new blood to Parliament, arguing that many of the former MPs who have been in politics for decades are corrupt and inefficient.

The NPP’s candidate lists are mostly comprised of relatively newcomers to politics.

This has also provided ammunition to its opponents to attack the NPP.

Speaking to the media this week, Samagi Jana Balawegaya (SJB) Kurunegala district candidate and former parliamentarian Thushara Indunil likened the NPP candidates to “Sengawunu Amuththan” (Hidden Visitors) because many did not know who most of them were. He contrasted this with the more-known faces fielded by other parties, such as the SJB. “The people need to decide whether they will cast their valuable vote for a
genuine people’s representative or a Sengawunu Amuththa or Goni Billa (Bogeyman),” he said.

Denial of photoshoot at Diyatha Uyana: One shot fires at EC

The United Democratic Voice (UDV) of actor-turned-politician Ranjan Ramanayake on Friday complained to the Election Commission after one of its Colombo district candidates was allegedly prevented from taking some publicity photographs at the Diyatha Uyana in Battaramulla for her campaign.

According to the complaint, the party said its Colombo district candidate Anuradha Guruge, an attorney-at-law, had been prevented by officials at the Diyatha Uyana from taking publicity photographs for her campaign. Ms. Guruge told the media that she had been prepared to pay the park the fees needed to take the publicity stills but that officials had prevented her from doing so on the grounds that the management had decided that candidates contesting for the election would not be allowed to use the park as a backdrop for publicity photographs.

The UDV alleged that the incident amounted to a violation of Ms. Guruge’s rights under the Constitution.

India showcases its rich Buddhist culture

With the Buddhism link as one of the key aspects of India’s foreign policy in recent times in its “Neighbourhood First” policy, particularly with Sri Lanka, India’s External Affairs Ministry is actively pursuing the Buddha’s ideology to connect with other regional countries.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi addressed the International Abhidhamma Divas ceremony at Vigyan Bhavan in New Delhi on Friday, commemorating the Buddha’s teachings and the recent recognition of Pali as a classical language by the Government of India.

India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi taking part at the International Abhidhamma Divas ceremony in New Delhi

In a separate event, India’s Rich Buddhist Heritage Exhibition, organised by the High Commission of India in Colombo, was held at Dematamal Viharaya in Okkampitiya on Thursday, Vap Full Moon Poya Day, showcasing India’s rich Buddhist heritage through a series of photographs depicting significant episodes from the life of the Buddha and important Buddhist pilgrimage sites in India.

Emphasising that many of the Indian government’s decisions are inspired by the Buddha, the Dhamma, and the Sangha and giving the example of India being the first responder in times of crisis in the world, Premier Modi did not forget to highlight the country’s swift actions during global emergencies such as the earthquake in Turkey, the economic crisis in Sri Lanka, and the COVID-19 pandemic.

He noted that this reflected the Buddha’s principle of compassion. “As a Vishwa Bandhu (friend of the world), India is taking everyone along with it,” he said.

Air Force adds ‘claws’ to RTI applications

The Air Force began a new process of requiring ‘certified copies’ of identification documents of individuals who seek information from the forces under the Right to Information (RTI) Act.

This came to light after an individual from the North was told by a relevant RTI officer instructing him to provide a copy of his National Identity Card certified by either the Grama Sevaka or a Justice of Peace to process his application further.

Earlier, he was asked to provide an NIC copy, which he complied with, but later, he was told to attach certified copies to process his application.

When asked why this additional procedure was, a senior Air Force media officer said that based on an “internal directive,” the Air Force is required to obtain the identification information about all applicants who file RTI petitions.

Under the RTI Act No. 12 of 2016, submitting identification documents of an applicant is not required by the law.

“We want to confirm the information sought by the individual is Sri Lankan as we received so many anonymous applications in the past,” the senior officer said.

Rs. one billion Sangupiddy Bridge closed for heavy vehicle traffic

For many northerners, this week’s announcement by the regional office of the Road Development Authority (RDA) limiting traffic flow of heavy vehicles on Sangupiddy Bridge was not a surprise given the poor maintenance and poor quality of the bridge built ten years ago at the cost of Rs. 1 billion.

The critically important land bridge that connects three districts in the Northern province along the A 32 road was built at the cost of Rs 1037 million and was declared open in January 2011 by former President Mahinda Rajapaksa.

On Friday, the RDA’s northern office announced that to ensure public safety, heavy vehicle flow on the bridge was temporarily restricted with immediate effect due to the corrosion of the deck plates.

In a communiqué sent to the Senior Superintendent of Police (Kilinochchi), regional RDA engineer T. Niththiyanantham informed him that, considering public safety concerns, the heavy vehicle flow has been restricted on the bridge to “avoid unnecessary damages until repairs are carried out.”

A Mannar-based fisherman who is engaged in transporting fish stocks to Colombo for export purposes every week lamented that the bridge was not built properly and the road along the bridge was badly damaged with potholes over the years.

“I’m sure someone would’ve pocketed some money from this. We don’t know how long it will take them to repair this bridge,” he said, echoing the sentiments of many others.

Former Jaffna MP goes slap bang against false video

With only a couple of weeks left for parliamentary polls on November 14, politicians who are contesting the elections are determined to gain votes by pulling out any kind of stunt, including negative publicity, to make them closer to the electorate.

As the old saying in advertising circles goes, “Any publicity is good publicity”, a local politician utilised the opportunity soon after he saw that a fake video depicting him was gaining traction on social media platforms this week.

The Sri Lanka Freedom Party’s former Jaffna District Parliamentarian, Angajan Ramanathan, who secured the highest preferential votes in the last polls, realised that he was targeted with a fake video where an individual who looked similar to him was slapping an official in an office environment. It turned out that the incident was from what happened at a bank in one of the northern states of India. In a counter video with slapping scenes edited in the middle, the former MP debunked it and stressed that it was a planned move by his opponents to discredit him.

Corruption in high places: Former presidents make shocking disclosures

At the 45th conference of the National Chartered Accountants, a panel discussion with three former presidents turned out to be a hot topic on social media platforms this week for startling revelations that filled the room with laughter and left many shocked, realising the plight the country found itself in under their leadership in the past.

It was former President Chandrika Kumaratunga who revealed that the
husband of a junior minister during her time as Prime Minister offered USD 5 million as a bribe inside the PM’s office in Parliament along with a Singaporean businessman. She said she refused the offer and warned them of arrest.

Commenting on the deep-rooted corruption in the governance and the government’s initiative to introduce new laws to prosecute them, the former president claimed that she was shown evidence gathered by the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) that the younger son of a former president illegally amassed USD 1000 million in a Dubai bank, but the authorities could not retrieve those funds due to legal issues. She then looked at former President Ranil Wickremesinghe and said, “You know him.”

Ms. Kumaratunga also alleged that another former President actively promoted corruption among his party politicians, from Cabinet Ministers and MPs to members of local bodies, saying, “Plunder as much as you want; just don’t get caught.”

For his part, former President Maithirpala Sirisena stressed that there were educated corrupt individuals in government other than politicians while explaining that it was impossible for ministers to steal funds without the knowledge of Chief Finance Officers and Secretaries of the respective ministries.

The remark indicated that those in the audience knew who the former president was speaking about as the hall went into a laughing mode.