Author: TELO Admin

President Ranil Wickremesinghe has deployed the military again, through a Gazette Extraordinary, to maintain law and order in the country.

The Gazette Extraordinary has been issued with effect from March 22, 2023.

“By virtue of the powers vested in me by Section 12 of the Public Security Ordinance (Chapter 40), I, Ranil Wickremesinghe, President, do by this order call out with effect from March 22, 2023 all the members of the Armed Forces specified in the First Schedule hereto, for the maintenance of public order in the areas specified in the Second Schedule hereto,” the Gazette Extraordinary said.

The First Schedule in the gazette names the Sri Lanka Army, Navy and Air Force.

The Second Schedule mentions all the areas in the country where the military has been placed on standby. This includes all the districts in Sri Lanka.

The military had been deployed to maintain law and order following the Easter Sunday attacks.

Noting that there is a problem as to how far it is ethical for the Government Printing Department to withhold the ballot papers related to 17 districts which have already been printed, the Election Commission (EC) stated that if those ballot papers are provided, the postal voting pertaining to the Local Government (LG) election can be held in the relevant districts.

Speaking to The Daily Morning yesterday (22), EC Chairman, Attorney Nimal G. Punchihewa said: “The Department has printed ballot papers related to 17 districts. It was more than a month ago that we requested from the Government Printer Gangani Liyanage that those ballot papers be given to us. However, we are yet to receive them and I do not know how far it is ethical for them to withhold them. If those ballot papers are released, postal voting can be held at least in those 17 districts.”

When queried as to whether the existing legal provisions allow for the postal voting to be held in only 17 districts, he said that there is no legal barrier to doing so. “Postal voting can be held in a few districts, and then in the rest.”

He also commented on the EC not having received the ballot papers for the postal voting on Tuesday (21), the date on which they expected to receive them. “We were expecting to receive them by Tuesday, but it did not happen. If we receive them even within the course of these two days (today [22] and tomorrow [23]), we can hold the LG elections as scheduled. If it does not happen, we will have to discuss and decide on the next course of action that we will have to take.”

In response to a query by The Daily Morning as to whether the EC would seek a meeting with Finance, Economic Stabilisation and National Policies Minister and President Ranil Wickremesinghe to discuss the current situation with regard to the release of funds for the LG Elections, Punchihewa said that the requests made by the EC to the Secretary to the Finance, Economic Stabilisation and National Policies Ministry and Treasury Mahinda Siriwardana have already been forwarded to Wickremesinghe.

“Our requests have already reached Wickremesinghe. If the Ministry and the general Treasury can declare a time by which they can release the funds for the LG elections, we can make the necessary decisions accordingly, but it is not happening. All that the Ministry and Siriwardana say is that our requests have been forwarded to the Minister. What I can say is that we, as the EC, are committed to holding the elections as soon as the funds are released. If it does not happen, it is up to the political parties and civil organisations to carry this struggle forward,” he added.

Speaking to The Daily Morning last week, Liyanage said that the EC has been requesting her to release the postal ballot papers for 17 districts which have already been printed, but that she could not release them just because the printing work is done.

“They should be checked and the relevant payments should be made to us by the Ministry and the Treasury. What if we would not receive the payments in case I release the ballot papers to the EC?,” she queried, adding that it is questionable as to whether the release of ballot papers only for 17 districts would be of use to the EC as it is not possible to hold the postal voting in only 17 districts.

The joint opposition including the Samagi Jana Balawegaya (SJB) met the diplomatic corps including the Ambassadors over the delay in holding the Local Government election, Opposition Leader Sajith Premadasa said today.

Responding to an allegation made by Chief Government Whip Prasanna Ranatunga that he learnt that the opposition political parties met the deplomatic corps and requested them to delay the IMF funds to Sri Lanka and enforce strict conditions, the oposition leader said they only discussed the delay in LG polls and that they never engage in political slander.

Premadasa said they had never related internal matters to the loans, benefits and donations that the country was to receive during discussions with the international community. “We informed the diplomatic corps that delaying elections could be a huge blow to democracy.

We have a right to meet diplomats and expedite the elections. We informed them that we have been signatories to some 20 international conventions including the ICCPR Act which promotes the right to election,” he said.

Chief Opposition Whip Lakshman Kiriella, who confirmed the meeting with diplomatic corps said they discussed the delay LG polls.

SJB MP Harsha de Silva said they never requested the deplomatic corps to tighten IMF conditions, instead expressed gratitude for the support they extended.

“Almost all the diplomats representing countries of bi-lateral creditors joined the said meeting. We thanked them for extending their support to Sri Lanka.

State Minister Indika Anuruddha commended the efforts made by President Ranil Wickremesinghe during a media briefing convened by the Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna.

He told reporters that it was Basil Rajapaksa who recommended that Wickremesinghe be handed over the task of taking the IMF program forward.

“The initial step was taken during the Gotabaya Rajapaksa administration. We had a few people in the Viyath Maga who were dragging the president’s feet. It was Basil Rajapaksa who in fact made the recommendation that Ranil Wickremesinghe is the only person who can take the program forward,” he said.

Sri Lanka’s High Commissioner to India Milinda Moragoda met with the Minister of Finance and Corporate Affairs of India Smt. Nirmala Sitharaman in New Delhi on Tuesday (21).

This was the latest of a series of meetings High Commissioner Moragoda has had with Minister Sitharaman since November 2021 on Indian economic cooperation and assistance to Sri Lanka in the context of the present economic crisis.

At the outset, High Commissioner Moragoda thanked Minister Sitharaman for the leadership that the government of India took towards the realization of the International Monetary Fund’s Extended Fund Facility (EFF) Arrangement for Sri Lanka.

He particularly thanked Minister Sitharaman for her personal involvement in taking up Sri Lanka’s case with bilateral development partners as well as multilateral financial agencies including the IMF in this context.

Minister Sitharaman and High Commissioner Moragoda also discussed the way forward in bilateral economic cooperation.

The ways and means to attract Indian investments to Sri Lanka, enhance bilateral trade particularly through Indian Rupee trade expansion and increasing the inflow of Indian tourists to Sri Lanka were explored and discussed.

The Minister and the High Commissioner agreed that these measures could form part of Sri Lanka’s economic recovery.

High Commissioner Moragoda also presented Minister Sitharaman with a copy of the publication “Geoffrey Bawa; Drawing from the Archives”, which contains the drawings of Sri Lanka’s iconic architect the late Geoffrey Bawa.

The publication was presented to her as a memento to mark the opening of the two month- long exhibition “Geoffrey Bawa: It Is Essential To Be There” which was inaugurated by the External Affairs Minister of India Dr. S. Jaishankar on 17th March 2023 at the National Gallery of Modern Art in New Delhi.

President Ranil Wickremesinghe tabled the IMF staff level agreement on the Extended Fund Facility (EFF) arrangement for Sri Lanka in Parliament, a short while ago.

President Wickremesinghe is currently in Parliament attending today’s parliamentary proceedings and is delivering a special statement on the IMF Extended Fund Facility.

He said that at a time when the country was in chaos in July last year, no one was willing to accept responsibility and that he was requested to take over.

“I had no power in Parliament, and no MPs from my Party to call my own.” However, the President said his strength was his conviction that he was capable of rebuilding the country.

He said that the IMF credit facility amounts to USD 3 billion over a period of 4 years, with the first tranche of USD 333 million already being received.

Additionally, the country is expecting about USD 7 billion dollars more in rapid credit support from other parties, he said.

He said the IMF facility is a step towards building a better future for the youth and uplifting the country.

The President said the IMF Extended Fund Facility will restore Sri Lanka’s international recognition, ensure the country is not bankrupt and help banks regain international recognition.

This will create opportunities for low interest credit, restore foreign investors’ confidence and lay the foundation for a strong new economy, he emphasized.

The President says that the government plans to reduce existing tax exemptions on Value Added Tax (VAT) by 2024, remove the simplified VAT system, and expedite its reimbursement.

He added that Estate Duty will be introduced as a property tax by 2025.

He also said that the government aims to reduce the primary deficit to 2.3% of the GDP by 2025 and to increase revenue to 14% of GDP by 2026.

He said the standard corporate income tax rate has been raised to 30%, and that sectoral tax holidays have been eliminated.

The PAYE tax rate has been raised from 12% to 15%, while the tax exemption limit has been reduced from Rs. 300 million to Rs. 80 million.

President Wickremeisnghe stated that fuel prices will be decided only by the 2018 Fuel Price Formula and that the electricity tariff will be adjusted every 06 months.

He urged the Members of the Parliament to approve the agreement reached with the IMF. “Only then can I start the second round of discussions,” he said, addressing the House.

“This is not the end of the journey. This is the beginning of a longer journey.”

The President said that amidst numerous hardships, bearing all kinds of pressure and undergoing suffering with equanimity, the people of this country remained calm and patient.

He said their commitment was a great strength in achieving the IMF Facility and therefore, he extended his gratitude to the people of the country.

The Executive Board of the IMF approved the Extended Fund Facility (EFF) to Sri Lanka at its board meeting held on Monday (20 March).

The program will allow Sri Lanka to access financing of up to US$ 7 billion from the IMF, International Financial Institutions (IFIs) and multilateral organizations.

Meanwhile, 48-month extended arrangement with an amount of SDR 2.286 billion (395 percent of quota or about USD 3 billion) was also approved under the EFF, with the aim of restoring Sri Lanka’s macroeconomic stability and debt sustainability, mitigating the economic impact on the poor and vulnerable, safeguarding financial sector stability, and strengthening governance and growth potential, the IMF said.