All Blogs
Not Fair
Flour Mill giant Singapores Prima Ceylon Ltd has filed papers for arbitration against the government for failing to honour two clauses in its agreement.A fresh deal signed by the government and Prima in April 2001, specified that flour giant will not be discriminated against any other company/person engaged in the producing wheat flour.rn rnThe government […]
Checklist
The Joint Business Forum on Wednesday, while expressing support for the newly elected Freedom Alliance, rolled out what it saw as a list of priorities for the new government. The top business grouping identified the peace process, the economy, bribery and corruption and infrastructure development as priority areas for the next UPFA government.rn rnIt also […]
Bad Boys
Transparency International urged for accountability past the polls, with less than ten of the over 5600 candidates that contested, discharging statutory duties to disclose assets and liabilities before the election. The corruption watchdog rapped local politicians for the lack of commitment to fight corruption in the electoral process, including abuse of state resources.rn rnldblquote TISL […]
Cosmetic Changes
President Chandrika Kumaratungas United Peoples Freedom Alliance (UPFA) Party is still struggling to secure a Parliamentary majority but they are already looking at forming a Constituent Assembly within the next two months – to tinker with the Constitution. ldblquote A date has not been set aside to form a Constituent Assembly but it should be […]
Musical Chairs
The election of nine Buddhist monks in Sri Lankas elections has sent parliamentary officials scrambling to make suitable seating and dining arrangements for the “honourable venerable.”rnThe saffron-robed monks elected from an all-clergy list put forward by the radical National Heritage Party also known as the Jathika Hela Urumaya (JHU) require special chairs and a vegetarian […]
Nail Biting
Local financial markets took a beating on Tuesday, which saw the equity and currency markets come under pressure, while bond dealers opted not to trade.Markets reacted sharply to the new government led by President Chandrika Kumaratunga, largely due to uncertainties surrounding its economic and reform agenda.rn rnKumaratungas United Peoples Freedom Alliance (UPFA) secured 105 seats […]
New PM
Former opposition leader and Sri Lanka Freedom Party stalwart from the South, 59-year-old Mahinda Rajapaksa took oaths as the new Prime Minister in President Chandrika Bandaranayake Kumaranatunge government at 11.26 on Tuesday morning. Prime Minister Rajapaksa, the seventeenth Prime Minister to be appointed since independence in 1948, earned the highest preference votes in the Hambantota […]
Lead Actor
Sri Lankas new prime minister, Mahinda Rajapakse, is a part-time film star but his new role requires a major balancing act to keep a minority government from collapsing in a hung parliament.rnHis swearing in ceremony Tuesday saw him performing his first “official act” as he smiled for the cameras after being given the post despite […]
Fresh Blood
The Cabinet of Ministers in the President Chandrika Bandaranayake Kumaranatunges new government is due to be finalised by Wednesday, say top JVP sources.Officials say the new Cabinet, the governments core decision making body could field upto 35 members, with the Marxist JVP taking four seats.rn rnJVP sources added that they would not push for greater […]
Who’s The Face?
The absence of a coherent economic policy, ranging from fiscal discipline, economic reforms, together with how fast new government will woo foreign donors to resume stalled aid, still remain a relatively grey area.rn rnldblquote The key thing is to see who will be the actual public face behind key ministries and state institutions, dblquote observes, […]