News

Garlic scam: Whistleblower ready to assist CID

Published

5 years ago

2021/09/29

Sahan Weerasooriya

‘No need to verify my claims; I stand by all charges’

By Shamindra Ferdinando

Former Executive Director of the Consumer Affairs Authority (CAA) Thushan Gunawardena questions the rationale behind the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) seeking to question journalists including editors of Sinhala and English national newspapers on the recent exposure of state-owned Lanka Sathosa Ltd (LSL) as a corrupt enterprise.

Gunawardena emphasised that the garlic scam exposed by him in his then capacity as the Executive Director of the Consumer Affairs Authority (CAA) was just one such corrupt deal.

Calling himself a whistleblower, an irate Gunawardena said that in the wake of intimidation and threats, he had e-mailed his resignation letter to the CAA Chairman, retired Maj. Gen. Shantha Dissanayake, on 21 Sept. “I haven’t received an acknowledgment from the CAA Chairman yet, Gunawardena told The Island yesterday (28) morning.

“Regardless of the Chairman’s response, I’m out,” Gunawardena said.

Responding to another query, Gunawardena said that he firmly stood by every word he had said about the garlic racket.

“As I felt a despicable attempt was being made to hush up the garlic scam, I decided to go public,” Gunawardena said.

Gunawardena said that the racketeers’ plan had gone awry due to the CAA raid on Welisara warehouse. The Sathosa plan was to condemn two container loads of 56,000 kilos of garlic bought at less than Rs 120 per kilo from the harbour, sell the consignment to a regular supplier at Rs 135 a kilo and buyback the same lot at Rs 445 a kilo, Gunawardena said.

Pointing out that senior management representative DGM (Finance) Susiri Perera had been arrested along with several other employees in that connection, Gunawardena said that the Trade Ministry owed an explanation as Sathosa came under its purview. Following the media exposure, Sathosa had no option but to rescind the agreement with the supplier and sell the stock of garlic through its network of outlets, Gunawardena said.

The CID named several journalists, including editors of The Island and the Divaina, following a complaint lodged by Trade Minister Bandula Gunawardena. The CID also sought to question Lankadeepa journalists including its editor.

In spite of an assurance received by the media Monday night that the CID wouldn’t seek statements from the media, the CID turned up at Lankadeepa offices yesterday (28) morning. The assurance was given after Monday’s Cabinet meeting chaired by Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa in the absence of President Gotabaya Rajapaksa who is yet to return from the US.

During post-Cabinet media briefing, the media sought an explanation from Minister Alahapperuma regarding the police seeking statements from the media. Expressing his deep regret, Minister Alahapperuma said that the police shouldn’t have sought to question journalists in that regard under any circumstances.

The Media Minister said that Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa had made it quite clear the media shouldn’t be questioned and Public Security Minister Rear Admiral Weerasekera, too, agreed.

However, Lankadeepa Editor Siri Ranasinghe told The Island yesterday that in spite of the assurances received from the government, the CID arrived at the Lankadeepa editorial in the morning. “We declined to make statements today. As they pressed for an appointment, we asked them to come back on 03 Oct.”

Gunawardena said that in addition to the print media and television coverage, garlic scam had received considerable attention in the social media. What was going on at Sathosa reflected the deepening economic crisis with several hundred container loads of food and other essential stuff held up at the Colombo harbour due to the inability of importers to clear them, Gunawardena said.

Gunawardena said that importers hadn’t been able to do so as the banks could not release US dollars. According to him as many as 800 containers had been held up due to Sri Lanka’s inability to pay for imported goods. It would be a grave blunder on the government’s part to confiscate such containers and make goods available through Sathosa outlets, Gunawardena said, urging the government to review its strategies.

“We are paying a very heavy price for not prudently managing Sathosa,” Gunawardena said. Declaring the absence of proper oversight mechanism, auditing, negligence and punitive action encouraged waste, corruption and irregularities, Gunawardena said Sathosa was a case in point. “Sathosa cannot be examined in isolation. Three other sister organisations, too, should be probed,” Gunawardena said, adding that he first got to know about the setup when Chamal Rajapaksa holding the trade portfolio asked for a report on them. The examination had revealed many crooked deals and on the instructions of Minister Rajapaksa, several cases were reported to the CID, Gunawardena said.

Gunawardena said that he had personally briefed the CID on corruption in enterprises coming under the purview of the trade ministry. Gunawardena explained how costly transactions had been carried out at the expense of the taxpayer regardless of the party in power. Declaring that he had received the appointment with the blessings of President Gotabaya Rajapaksa, Gunawardena said that Sathosa and other such enterprises were nothing but a heavy burden on the people.

Gunawardena revealed that in his report to Minister Chamal Rajapaksa and he had recommended the closing down of two enterprises coming under the Trade Ministry as such waste, corruption and irregularities couldn’t be condoned. Gunawardena urged Parliament to probe the enterprises coming under the trade ministry without further delay.

Gunawardena said that he sincerely hoped the top SLPP leadership would realise how poor management at key ministries undermined the government was. The sugar scam, unprecedented shortage in rice as well as continuing shortage of cement and milk powder indicated rapidly deteriorating situation.

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News

Current El Niño Status in Sri Lanka

Published

2 hours ago

2026/07/16

Priyan

At present, El Niño conditions have developed and are classified as being at a weak level. Forecasts indicate a 63% probability of a very strong El Niño event developing during the period from November 2026 to January 2027. According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), there is approximately a one-third probability that El Niño will remain below a very strong intensity.

Typical Climatic Conditions Associated with El Niño
Based on analyses of past El Niño events that occurred between 1950 and 2025:
• Rainfall during July and August may be below normal, particularly in the dry zone areas.
• From October onward, rainfall is generally expected to be above normal.
• If a positive Indian Ocean Dipole (IOD) develops, enhanced rainfall conditions may continue until December.

Sectors Requiring Attention
• Appropriate measures should be taken for water resource management during July and August.
• Increased rainfall expected from October onward may lead to floods and landslides, requiring preparedness and close monitoring. The forecasts are important for sectors such as, Agriculture /Water management /Livestock /Health /Energy /Other climate-sensitive sectors
• Attention should be paid to official information issued by the Department of Meteorology.

Actions by the Department of Meteorology
The Department of Meteorology continuously monitors the evolving situation and issues:
• Weekly and monthly seasonal forecasts and Monthly analyses of rainfall data to monitor meteorological drought conditions.
As weather conditions are influenced not only by El Niño but also by other climatic factors, updated forecasts and advisories are regularly shared with relevant stakeholder organizations (Irrigation/ Water Management Committee /Department of Agriculture/National Building Research Institute/Disaster Management Centre (DMC)/Ministry of Health /Sri Lanka Land Development Corporation…etc). The Department also provides technical support to the committee established through a Cabinet decision to address climate-related impacts. The Department’s monthly rainfall outlook for July to September 2026 is attached

Monthly Rainfall Forecasts for July, August and September 2026
Month Rainfall forecast
July 2026

During July 2026, there is a higher probability of having near normal rainfall across most parts of the Western and Southern Provinces. The remainder of the country is expected to experience below normal rainfall.

August 2026

There is a higher probability of having below normal rainfall across most parts of the country during month of August 2026.

September 2026

There is a possibility of above-normal rainfall across most parts of the Western and Southern Provinces, while near-normal rainfall is expected in the Sabaragamuwa Province. Below-normal rainfall is likely in the remaining areas during September 2026.

Note: These long-range forecasts may change due to strong day-to-day atmospheric variability associated with the movement of weather systems such as atmospheric disturbances, low-pressure areas, and depressions, as well as intra-seasonal oscillations such as the Madden–Julian Oscillation (MJO). Therefore, in addition to the weekly and monthly forecasts, it is important to pay attention to the Department’s official announcements, weather advisories and warnings, as well as the daily weather forecasts issued by the Department of Meteorology.

News

Govt. move to extend retirement ages of top judges: Opp. complains to UN

Published

3 hours ago

2026/07/16

Sahan Weerasooriya

Prof. Peiris addresses the media outside the UN compound in Colombo on Thursday on the controversial government move to extend the retirement ages of Superior Court judges, while former MPs Thalatha Atukorale, Dr Suren Raghavan and Premanath C. Dolawatta look on.

Former External Affairs Minister Prof. G. L. Peiris yesterday (15) briefed the UN Resident Coordinator in Colombo, Marc-André Franche, on President Anura Kumara Dissanayake’s move to extend the retirement ages of the superior court judges and the delay in filling the vacancies in the Supreme Court and the Court of Appeal.

Prof. Peiris, the convenor of the People’s Joint Opposition, led the delegation that included UNP General Secretary and former Minister Thalatha Atukorale, former UPFA National List parliamentarian Suren Raghavan and ex- SLPP MP Premnath C. Dolawatta.

Having met the top official here, Prof. Peiris briefed the media on their decision to bring the developing situation to the notice of the UN.

Referring to the opposition of the legal fraternity to the NPP government’s plan, Prof. Peiris emphasised that the civil society, too, had opposed the politically motivated initiative.

Prof. Peiris said that instead of addressing the burning issues affecting the public, the government was creating new problems.

News

Dengue surge pushes hospitals to the brink as cases near 70,000

Published

3 hours ago

2026/07/16

Sahan Weerasooriya

A week-long crackdown to begin in 11 districts

Hospitals are coming under mounting pressure as the country’s dengue epidemic gathers pace, with nearly 70,000 infections and 48 deaths reported so far this year, prompting health authorities to launch an intensive week-long mosquito control campaign in 11 districts.

The National Dengue Control Unit (NDCU) said 69,951 dengue cases had been reported by July 13, with 14,572 new infections recorded during the first 13 days of July alone. June saw the highest monthly caseload of the year, underlining the rapid spread of the mosquito-borne disease during the southwest monsoon.

Acting Director of the NDCU, Dr. Kapila Kannangara, warned that the hospital system was facing severe congestion due to the unprecedented influx of dengue patients.

“We are seeing an alarming increase in admissions. Hospitals are under tremendous pressure, and public cooperation is essential to bring the outbreak under control,” he said, announcing that a special one-week dengue control programme would be implemented across 11 high-risk districts.

Health authorities have identified 175 Medical Officer of Health (MOH) divisions as high-risk dengue zones. Public Health Inspectors will conduct inspections, eliminate mosquito breeding sites and initiate legal action against those maintaining mosquito-infested premises.

The Western Province continues to account for the largest share of infections, with Gampaha and Colombo among the worst-affected districts. Several hospitals are already operating beyond capacity as the number of admissions continues to climb.

Health officials attributed the surge to intermittent rains, poor waste disposal, stagnant water collections and inadequate community participation in vector control programmes.

The Ministry of Health has appealed to local authorities, schools, workplaces, religious institutions and households to inspect their premises regularly, clear blocked drains and roof gutters, cover water storage containers and remove discarded tyres, cans, bottles and other containers capable of collecting rainwater.

Medical experts urged the public not to ignore symptoms such as persistent fever, severe headache, pain behind the eyes, vomiting, abdominal pain and bleeding manifestations, stressing that early medical treatment is critical in preventing severe dengue and deaths.

Officials emphasised that eliminating mosquito breeding sites remains the single most effective way of controlling dengue, warning that unless communities actively participate, the outbreak could worsen during the ongoing rainy season.

With daily case numbers continuing to rise and hospitals struggling to cope, health authorities said the coming weeks would be crucial in determining whether the country can curb one of its worst dengue outbreaks in recent years.

By Ifham Nizam