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President Anura Kumara Dissanayake’s visit to the North this week turned out to be an exercise in evaluating ongoing government development programmes and proposals ahead of the budget, which is scheduled to be presented on February 17.

When the critical issue of the lack of proper roads and infrastructure in urban and rural areas of Jaffna came under discussion at the District Coordination Committee (DCC) meeting on Friday, the President asked senior officials attending the meeting how much funding was needed to repair and develop critical roads in the districts.

Taken aback by the question, the senior officials attached to the central and provincial administrations looked at each other and tried to point fingers in what was seen as passing the ball.

Other than the meeting, President Dissanayake had two other community engagements in Mirusuvil and Valvettithurai, where local NPP members were told to bring a ‘decent number of people’ to the events.

Addressing the Mirusuvil meeting, the President made a reference to a blockbuster Tamil movie, Kamal Haasan’s Thasavatharam (Ten avatars) to explain the white elephant projects of Presidential palaces built in various parts of the country, including the Kankesanthurai palace built during President Mahinda Rajapaksa’s tenure.

“Just like the film’s title, for every avatar of the previous president, a separate bungalow has been built,” President Dissanayake said, drawing a light moment from the audience. The President also assured the crowd that the northern presidential palace would be released for a ‘suitable project’ that benefits the people of the areas.

Ranil’s diplomatic response to public complaints

Former President Ranil Wickremesinghe visited the Galle residence of the late Victor Ivan, the onetime JVP activist turned newspaper editor, last week to express his condolences to the family members over his death.

While there, he was approached by many villagers, who had a long list of grievances to tell the former president—from the skyrocketing cost of living to the shortages of rice. Mr. Wickremesinghe was diplomatic in his response. He told them, “Let’s see what happens,” before leaving the venue.

Wijerama residence: What Ranil told Gammanpila

The row over former President Mahinda Rajapaksa’s official residence is continuing with all parties pitching in with their views.

Adding to the controversy was an anecdote former president Ranil Wickremesinghe told former parliamentarian Udaya Gammanpila during a meeting the former president convened this week. Mr. Wickremesinghe explained to Mr. Gammanpila that the decision to give the Wijerama Mawatha house in Colombo to Mr. Rajapaksa was taken during the Yahapalanaya government, which the JVP supported.

This house was previously occupied by Maithripala Sirisena when he was health minister. When he became President in 2015, the house fell vacant. As Mr. Rajapaksa had no residence in Colombo, he had requested that he be allowed to move into the Wijerama Mawatha residence. All party leaders, including current President Anura Kumara Dissanayake, were present at the meeting where it was decided to give the house to Mr. Rajapaksa,
Mr. Gammanpila was told.

Clean Sri Lanka stops with a photo op

Misunderstood: Government supporters are cleaning up Fort railway station area as part of the Clean Sri Lanka initiative

The ‘Clean Sri Lanka’ programme has become a ‘keeping up appearances’ task for some in the government.

Clad in specially designed ‘Clean Sri Lanka’ tee-shirts, a group of government supporters, including Public Security Deputy Minister Sunil Watagala, participated in a cleanup programme near the Fort Railway station with a number of media personnel in attendance to record the event.

There was a great deal of activity till the cameras were rolling, but once the photojournalists left, those who had come for the clean-up operation quickly made an exit. That too, leaving behind the garbage they had set out to collect.

Rice crisis: Seelarathana Thera’s jakfruit solution

Janasetha Peramuna leader, the Ven. Battaramulle Seelarathana Thera, has suggested a solution for the government to implement to address the prevailing rice shortage—ask people to eat jakfruit at least for one meal a day.

Addressing a media briefing, Ven. Seelarathana Thera pointed out that the country still had a sizable prison population, including those who have been sentenced to death. He noted that prison inmates were being housed on taxpayer funds and were also being fed rice at the state’s expense.

Holding up a large jakfruit, he suggested that the government first start feeding jakfruit to prison inmates instead of rice for at least one meal per day. This can then be expanded to include the general public also, he suggested.

Descendants in South India commemorate Lanka’s last king

The tomb of Sri Lanka's last king, Sri Wickrama Rajasingha in Vellore

Students of history are aware that the tomb of Sri Lanka’s last king, Sri Wickrama Rajasingha, is located at Vellore in the southern Indian state of Tamil Nadu, and his descendants continue to commemorate him.

The 193rd commemoration of the death of Sri Wickrama Rajasingha, hailing from the Madura Nayak dynasty, was held on Thursday (January 30) at the Muthu Mandapam, a memorial hall built incorporating the king’s tomb. He died on January 30, 1832, at Vellore Fort in Tamil Nadu.

Special religious poojas are performed at the King’s tomb by his heirs every year on the anniversary of his death. This year too, the commemorative ceremony was held on behalf of the King’s descendants living in Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, and Karnataka, according to the festival coordinator and the 7th heir of the king, V. Ashokraja.

Railway station or dried-fish station?

Drying fish on the railway platform

In a Colombo suburb railway station, the platform is being used as a fish-drying area by fishermen.

Just like in farming areas where paddy farmers lay out their harvest to dry on either side of the public road, these innovative fishermen have found a novel use for the railway platform. Commuters are now greeted with a sight—and smells—of a neatly arranged line-up of fish, basking in the sun, waiting to become perfectly dried-fish.

Dullas raises crucial questions on cleared containers

Despite clarifications from the Sri Lanka Customs regarding the release of 323 containers from the Colombo port, questions continue to be raised over the matter.

Among those who have taken to social media to raise questions over the issue is former parliamentarian Dullas Alahapperuma. On his X account, he wrote that the containers that were released bypassing proper customs clearance have sparked public suspicion, raising concerns of yet another major corruption scandal involving politicians and officials.

“This controversy has significantly damaged the credibility of the current administration. However, instead of a clear and transparent response, all we have seen so far are defensive political statements, a shallow press release by the Director General of Customs, and dismissive denials—reactions that are expected but far from reassuring. For the first time in history, a Customs Director has been appointed as the Presidential Secretary, and this scandal has unfolded during his tenure. As a government officer with a clean track record, the Presidential Secretary should be deeply concerned about this alleged corruption,” Mr. Alahapperuma said.

He also said the government must immediately provide clear answers to the several critical questions, including who imported these containers, what items were declared in the import documentation (according to Customs paper), which country or countries these shipments were imported from, and who the wharf clerks handling these containers were.

He said if the government fails to be transparent on the matter, then the credibility of the government would be damaged. He also recalled that in July 2019, the present President, then a member of Parliament, raised six similar questions in Parliament regarding the alleged release of 102 containers.

The puzzle over quitting heads

The new government has been hit by a spate of resignations of state entity heads appointed after it took office.

The first to resign was Senesh Bandara as chairman of the Sri Lanka Rupavahini Corporation in December last year. In January, there were five resignations—Sri Lanka Transport Board Chairman Ramal Siriwardena, National Youth Services Council Chairman Chinthaka Dharshana Hewapathirana, National Housing Development Authority Chairman N.B.M. Ranatunga, National Transport Medical Institute (NTMI) Chairman Dr. Ruwan Wijemuni, and Atomic Energy Authority (AEA) Chairman Prof. S.R.D. Rosa.

While most have diplomatically maintained that the resignations are due to ‘personal reasons,’ there is speculation that there’s more to these developments than meets the eye.

NAO shocker: 70 percent of train journeys cancelled in 2023

Although the main mission of Sri Lanka Railways is to provide an efficient service to commuters, 70 percent of train journeys had not taken place as scheduled in 2023, according to the National Audit Office (NAO).

In the 2023 Performance Report tabled recently in Parliament, the NAO notes that of the 122,426 train journeys that had been scheduled in the year of audit, only 36,771 journeys had taken place. The number of train journeys cancelled during this period was 10,531. Though 113,759 passenger train journeys had been scheduled during the year, only 36,053 journeys had taken place on schedule.

The NAO has further observed that strikes within the Railways Department that had taken place throughout the year, often on “insufficient grounds,” had severely inconvenienced commuters, meaning they did not receive a high level of service from the department.