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Karu pleads with govt. to reconsider decision to abolish MPs’ pensions
Former Speaker and Chairman of the Retired Members of Parliament Collective, Karu Jayasuriya, has urged President Anura Kumara Dissanayake to reconsider the government’s decision to abolish pensions of former parliamentarians, warning that the move would affect about 490 retired and serving members.
Speaking to the media, Jayasuriya said, “For many, these pensions are essential for survival. Abolishing them will devastate the livelihoods of retired legislators and their families.”
Secretary of the Collective, former MP Pemasiri Manage, said that four party leaders currently received pensions..
Six party leaders, including Wimal Weerawansa, Dinesh Gunasekara, Tissa Witarana, and Vasudeva Nanayakkara, would lose their pensions if the Bill is enacted.
Manage said around 150 spouses of former MPs also relied on pensions, with a total of 490 former MPs and their families affected. He added that the pension of the late Lohan Ratwatte would now go to his widow.
Manage described Sri Lanka as “the only country in the world attempting to abolish the pensions of retired parliamentarians,” calling the move a violation of human rights. He said the Retired MPs Collective has appealed to the United Nations Human Rights Commission in Geneva, urging swift action against the government’s decision.
In a letter to the UN body, the Collective, which represents nearly 500 members, highlighted that most retired MPs have no other source of income. Manage further warned that if the pensions are abolished, they may be forced to demand the return of salaries earned illegally by all MPs during their tenure, from Pradeshiya Sabha members to national legislators.
Under the 1977 law passed by the National State Assembly, the Parliamentary Pensions Act No. 1 of 1977, MPs completing five years of service are entitled to a pension equal to one-third of their salary, while those serving 10 years or more can receive up to two-thirds of their salary. The law was intended to compensate MPs who forfeit state pensions upon being sworn in, as required by the Constitution.
Manage said that the new government, however, has decided to scrap the pension system. Cabinet approval has already been granted to instruct the Legal Draftsman to prepare a Bill repealing the Parliamentary Pensions Act.
The Retired MPs Collective has vowed to pursue legal action if the pension is abolished stating that many retired MPs are elderly, or ill, and are unable to find employment or run businesses. They argue that it is extremely unfair to abolish their pensions, which are often barely enough to meet their family’s basic needs.
Sri Lanka Cricket has announced today (29) that the President of Sri Lanka Cricket and members of the Executive Committee have tendered their resignations.
The decision has been formaly communicated to President Anura Kumara Dissanayake and the Minister of Youth Affairs and Sports.
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Heat Index at Caution Level in the Northern, North-central and North-western provinces and in Kegalle, Trincomalee and Batticaloa districts during the day time
Warm Weather Advisory
Issued by the Natural Hazards Early Warning Centre
Issued at 3.30 p.m. on 28 April 2026, valid for 29 April 2026.
The Heat index, the temperature felt on human body is likely to increase up to ‘Caution level’ at some places in the Northern, North-central and North-western provinces and in Kegalle,
Trincomalee and Batticaloa districts during the day time.
The Heat Index Forecast is calculated by using relative humidity and maximum temperature and this is the condition that is felt on your body. This is not the forecast of maximum temperature. It is generated by the Department of Meteorology for the next day period and prepared by using global numerical weather prediction model data.
Effect of the heat index on human body is mentioned in the above table and it is prepared on the advice of the Ministry of Health and Indigenous Medical Services.
ACTION REQUIRED
Job sites: Stay hydrated and takes breaks in the shade as often as possible.
Indoors: Check up on the elderly and the sick.
Vehicles: Never leave children unattended.
Outdoors: Limit strenuous outdoor activities, find shade and stay hydrated.
Dress: Wear lightweight and white or light-colored clothing.
Note:
In addition, please refer to advisories issued by the Disaster Preparedness & Response Division, Ministry of Health in this regard as well. For further clarifications please contact 011-7446491.
New controversy erupts over missing USD 2.5 mn:
Public interest activist Nagananda Kodituwakku has sought citizenship details of Finance Ministry Secretary Harshana Suriyapperuma from the Department of Home Affairs, Australia.
According to a letter dated 28 April, addressed to the relevant department, Solicitor England and Wales Kodituwakku sought the required information in terms of Section 15 of the Freedom of Information Act No 3 of 1982 of Australia. Suriyapperuma is also the Secretary to the Treasury.
The former Deputy Minister of Finance and Planning Suriyapperuma (from November 2024 to June 2025) is embroiled in a deepening controversy over the theft of USD 2.5 mn from the Treasury.
The leader of the Vinivida Foundation said that he intended to move court against Suriyapperuma for entering Parliament through the NPP National List in violation of the country’s Constitution (Article 91(1)(d)(xiiii).
Kodituwakku said: “This is clearly an accountability and integrity issue and violation of the Constitution of Sri Lanka and also this act contravenes the law of a member in the Commonwealth.”
USD 2.5 mn paid to a third party was meant to be an instalment of a loan taken from Australia. Suriyapperuma neither responded to an SMS nor answered his hand phone.
Geetha Kumarasinghe (UPFA/Galle District) and Diana Gamage (SJB National List) lost their seats in 2017 and 2024, respectively, over citizenship issues.
Meanwhile, public interest group ‘Free Lawyers’ that exposed the theft of Treasury funds questioned the failure on the part of Dr. Harsha de Silva, Chairman of Committee on Public Finance (CoPF), to pressure President Anura Kumara Dissanayake to temporarily remove Suriyapperuma to facilitate unhindered investigations.
On behalf of ‘Free Lawyers’, Rajith Keerthi Tennakoon yesterday expressed concern over the way the CoPF, under SJBer de Silva’s leadership, handled the issue at hand. Issuing an open letter, Tennakoon, urged the CoPF chief to explain his stand on a spate of vital issues which needed to be addressed without any further delay.
By Shamindra Ferdinando
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Heat Index at Caution Level in the Northern, North-central and North-western provinces and in Kegalle, Trincomalee and Batticaloa districts during the day time
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