Author: TELO Admin

Finance Minister Basil Rajapaksa who is on a two-day official visit to India, met with the National Security Advisor of India Shri Ajit Kumar Doval, in New Delhi today (02)

National Security Advisor Doval extended a warm welcome to Minister Basil Rajapaksa and engaged in an extremely cordial conversation with him and discussed a range of issues pertaining to the mutual strategic interests of the two countries.

Sri Lanka’s High Commissioner to India Milinda Moragoda and Finance Secretary S R Attygalle accompanied the minister to the meeting.

Shri Ajit Kumar Doval is the fifth National Security Advisor of India. He holds the rank of a Cabinet Minister.

The Board of Investment of Sri Lanka, the state investment promotion agency had been hit by resignations of several board members and senior officials.

Board members Harsha Cabraal PC, Sanjay Kulathunga and Harsha Subasinghe as well as Chairman Sanjaya Mohottala and Director General Pasan Wanigasekara have tendered their resignations, sources said.

The resignations came in the wake of an internal tussle between a trade union and senior management and recent questioning of BOI officials by the parliament’s committee on public enterprises.

Among points of contention had been a newly appointed committee.

Questions had also been raised about the investments in zones made in 2017 and 2019 before the current management took office.

A media statement releaed by the BOI’s communications unit said several members of the board had stepped down.

The agency had to to compete against international promotion agencies and leadership felt the need to get new talent the statement said.

The full statement is reproduced below:

MEDIA STATEMENT

Prominent members of the Board of Directors of the Board of Investment have stepped down from their positions.

The Chairman, members of the Board of Directors and Director General assumed office with the singular intent of supporting His Excellency the President’s vision to double Sri Lanka’s GDP in this decade. In line with this, the Board of Investment’s role in transforming the country into a preferred investment destination by creating a compelling investment climate arose through the conceptualisation and execution of strategic and proactive investment promotions.

To achieve this strategic agenda, the cabinet and the leadership team of the Board of Investment recognised that many transformations were required internally to enable the Board of Investment to compete against over 1,000 international promotion agencies active globally. They also recognised that this task could not be achieved in silos, and that collaborative efforts through a public-private partnership model was essential.

This included the infusion of specialist skills through the acquisition of new talent for selected positions and also the obtaining of specialist professional services to attract and create new investment portfolios to stimulate the country’s trajectory towards a knowledge driven economy.

Unfortunately, the efforts of the leadership to achieve this urgently required transformation, was strongly and continuously resisted by isolated factions both within and outside the organization,who have put their self-interest over the public. Such factions either failed or refused to comprehend the competitive realities of the international promotion landscape, in which Sri Lanka needs to compete much more effectively, if it is to attract FDI at the scale the country needs.

It is also a matter of regret that the progressive agenda of the leadership has come into question in public fora, also implying mismanagement based on events that occurred during 2017 and 2019, a period prior to the time of the current leadership.

The many distortions and misconceptions publicised about the Board of Investment as a result of this confusion, has affected the reputation of the Board of Investment internationally, as well as the reputations of its key personnel.

Despite these unfortunate developments, the leadership of the Board of Investment remain confident
about the significant potential their programme of reforms can provide to support Sri Lanka’s economic progress in future, if it is continued to its natural culmination. They are hopeful that all stakeholders will collectively work in that manner necessary for the greater good of Sri Lanka and all its citizens.

Chief Opposition Whip Lakshman Kiriella has requested the Chief Government Whip to allow Members of Parliament to enter universities and law colleges.

He made this request during the Budget Committee debate on the Expenditure Heads of several Ministries including the Ministry of Education.

Kiriella said that the educational background of the MPs was being widely discussed in society today and that a program could be initiated to provide them with an education.

“The MPs representing the House are capable and intelligent individuals. It is not an easy task to win an election and become Parliamentarians,” Kiriella said.

He said that after five or six years in Parliament, a great deal of knowledge can be gained by experience and MPs can be given the opportunity to enter universities and law colleges.

He said that some Members of Parliament were able to enter the Law College without an examination in the 1970s and that the opportunity was created by former Secretary General of Parliament Sam Wijesinghe.

The Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP) suggests that it would be appropriate to hold the Provincial Council elections expeditiously, under the former election system the least limited to this particular election alone.

The suggestion was made at the Select Committee of Parliament to Identify Appropriate Reforms of the Election Laws and the Electoral System and to Recommend Necessary Amendments held today (02).

State Minister Dayasiri Jayasekara who testifying on behalf of the party at the committee stated that many problems have risen due to postponing of the provincial council elections for a long time.

He stated that his party was of the view that the provincial council elections should be held immediately. Furthermore, local government elections should be held in the first quarter of next year. The number of local government representatives should be limited to a maximum of 5500, he said.

Minister Mahinda Amaraweera stated at the committee that it is not appropriate to extend the term of local government bodies. The Minister also pointed out that the public opinion is that the number of seats in local government bodies should be reduced.

Minister Nimal Siripala de Silva explained that after the announcement of the Local Government Elections, the powers of those institutions should be transferred to a commissioner until the election is held and the new members are sworn in.

The Leader of the House, Minister Dinesh Gunawardena stated that the Attorney General is of the view that the Provincial Council elections cannot be held under the existing law and that the necessary legal provisions should be brought for the purpose of the stated. He also stated that the general opinion of the Committee is that the Provincial Council elections should be held expeditiously.

The SLFP proposed to the committee that the number of members to be elected from the divisions should be 60 percent and the number of members to be elected proportionally should be 40 percent when the electoral system is amended.

The party said necessary legal provisions should be made to limit election expenses and commended President Gotabaya Rajapaksa’s presentation of a Cabinet Memorandum on Limiting Election Expenditure. The SLFP also said that women’s representation at all levels should be 25 percent of the total number of candidates.

Furthermore, the conduct of media during election period should be regulated. The SLFP also emphasized the importance of regulating social media behaviour.

Professor Sudantha Liyanage, Vice Chancellor of the University of Sri Jayewardenepura, Chairman of the Expert Committee on the analysis of appropriate reforms of the election laws and the electoral system and to recommend necessary amendments stated if the new electoral system is adjusted to the 70:30 ratio, the existing number of seats in local government bodies could be reduced by 1,500.

He also pointed out the need to revise the electoral system so that the winning political party in the local government area gets two bonus seats.
The Secretary to the Select Committee, Deputy Secretary General & Chief of Staff of Parliament Ms. Kushani Rohanadheera stated that the next meeting of the Parliamentary Select Committee will be held on the 07th.

State Ministers Lasantha Alagiyawanna and Duminda Dissanayake also represented the SLFP at the committee meeting. Members of Parliament M. A. Sumanthiran, Madhura Withanage and Sagara Kariyawasam were also present as members of the Committee.

Officials representing the Election Commission and the Attorney General’s Department were also present.

China’s Sino Soar Hybrid Technology Co., Ltd. has decided to suspend power projects in three islands in the Northern Province due to security concerns raised by a thrid party.
The Chinese Embassy said in a Twitter message that the company has, instead, signed a contract with the Maldivian Government on November 19 to establish solar power plants at 12 islands in the island country.
Under this contract, 2.5MW of Solar PV, 975kW of Battery Energy Storage System (BESS) will be installed. The project is expected to avoid 2,900 tons of carbon dioxide emission annually.