News
‘As long as people want the military to help, we will be there’
National recognition was conferred on a group of internationally certified search and rescue operators at the Disaster Management Center in Colombo on August 12.
Participants from the search and rescue programs conducted by A-PAD with instructors from the International Rescue Instructors Association received national recognition in Swift Water search and rescue.
The Search and Rescue Team included personnel from the Sri Lanka Army, Sri Lanka Navy, Sri Lanka Air Force, Police, Civil Defence Force, Sri Lanka Life Saving, and the private sector.
The A-PAD International Symposium 2021 on Civil-Military Dialogue organized by the Asia Pacific Alliance for Disaster Management was held in Colombo strictly adhering to COVID-19 guidelines with limited physical participation and virtual global attendance.
The symposium was attended by the Director-General of the Disaster Management Center Major General Sudantha Ranasinghe who said it is a responsibility of all to create a safer Sri Lanka and ensure that all citizens in the country are safe, protected, and looked after well.
Speaking on Sri Lanka’s current situation, the Director-General noted that the ‘human responsibility is entrusted to the military because that is the biggest human resource capacity that belongs to the government of Sri Lanka.
“As long as the people want us, the military, to help them, we will be there. It is our responsibility,” he stressed.
The first Secretary of the Embassy of Japan Hoshiai Chiharu was the guest of honor along with Dr. Hemantha Herath, the Deputy Director-General of Public Health Services.
The Search and Rescue Group that underwent special training is ready to be deployed to any area that experiences massive floods in the country.
It has been reported that Attorney at Law Rakitha Rajapakshe, the son of former Minister of Justice Wijeyadasa Rajapakshe, has been arrested by the Commission to Investigate Allegations of Bribery or Corruption (CIABOC) over alleged links with the underworld.
… alleges NPP trying to implement UPFA, UNP plan
Front-line Socialist Party (FSP) yesterday (24) alleged that the NPP government’s move to amalgamate the Employees’ Trust Fund (ETF) and the Employees’ Provident Fund (EPF), under a unified, tripartite governance framework, would be detrimental to the private sector workers.
Addressing the media at Melder Place, Nugegoda, FSP spokesman Duminda Nagamuwa said that the Cabinet of Ministers approved this proposal on 15 June.
Nagamuwa claimed that the NPP was trying to implement what President Mahinda Rajapaksa had sought to do, in 2011, causing the police to open fire on a group of the Export Processing Zone workers, protesting against the move to create a private pension scheme. A worker, identified as Roshen Chanaka, was shot by police on May 30, 2011, and he succumbed to his injuries.
Pointing out that the EPF and the ETF had been established for the benefit of private sector workers but with different objectives, Nagamuwa warned that amalgamation of the two funds could cause unnecessary complications.
The FSP spokesman said that Ravi Karunanayake, in his capacity as the Finance Minister of the Yahapalana government, in late November 2015 had declared their intention to amalgamate the ETF with the EPF.
FSP’s Pubudu Jayagoda told The Island that they expected all political parties, other than the NPP, to disclose their stand on the vital issue. Jayagoda urged the Opposition to take a stand on the vital issue .
By Shamindra Ferdinando
The Opposition yesterday argued in Parliament that the National Environment Amendment Bill was unconstitutional. The Opposition said that it violated the 13th Amendment.
SJB and Opposition Leader Sajith Premadasa argued that the approval of the Provincial Councils was required for the Bill to go ahead, as it was a subject in the Concurrent List of powers as per the 13th Amendment to the Constitution.
The MP also said that the clause which enables the Central Government to file legal actions against Local Government bodies was unconditional as well, since local bodies are included in the Provincial Councils list.
“How can you go ahead at a time when the Provincial Councils do not function properly,” Premadasa questioned.
ITAK MP P. Sathyalingam also raised the issue, but Speaker Jagath Wickramaratne, who responded, said the MPs could raise the relevant matters during the debate.
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