News

Govt. appeals to people not to fall prey to any false propaganda against vaccination drive

Published

2 years ago

2021/07/31

Senior Presidential Advisor Lalith Weeratunga explains measures taken by the government to sustain the ongoing inoculation drive against the raging Covid-19 epidemic, at a media briefing at the Presidential Media Centre (pic courtesy PMD)

Take the vaccine without fail

By Ifham Nizam

All Lankans, over the age of 30, would be vaccinated against Covid-19 by September 15, Head of the Presidential Task Force for National Deployment and Vaccination Plan, Lalith Weeratunga said on Thursday.

Weeratunga said President Gotabaya Rajapaksa was very keen on tackling virus hotspots and the intelligence services were rendering yeoman service.

President Rajapaksa had urged all Sri Lankans not to be deceived by false propaganda against the vaccination drive and to get the COVID-19 vaccine without fail and, thereby, assist the government in overcoming the socio-economic challenges posed by the pandemic, Weeratunga said.

Fielding questions after opening the President’s Media Centre in Colombo, Weeratunga said that they would have those between 18 and 30 years vaccinated next.

The veteran civil servant said the government was confident of achieving the vaccination target by the end of December with the help of the WHO. The government had spent between USD 60 and 65 million on Covid-19 vaccines.

Weeratunga also stressed that there was no decision to purchase the Sinovac vaccine.

He said more than 8.2 million Sri Lankans had so far received at least one vaccine dose. More than 1.8 million people had received both shots.

President’s Director General (MEDIA) Sudewa Hettiarachcchi and President’s Media Spokesman, Kingsly Rathnayake said by July 28, some 84% of the people over the age of 30 years in the Colombo District had received the first dose. In the Gampaha District, more than 93% had received the first dose. In the Kalutara District the percentage exceeded 85%.

More than 99% of the people over the age of 30 years in the Matale District have received their first dose.

At present, a mobile vaccination service for those who are unable to leave their homes was already in operation on the instructions of the President Rajapaksa.

Weeratunga also said the government aimed to vaccinate 11.5 million people over the age of 30 by August 31, 2021 and another four million would be vaccinated thereafter.

Plans were also underway to inoculate all Sri Lankans between the ages of 12 and 30 next.

At the current rate of inoculation some 15 million people in Sri Lanka would be vaccinated by December 31, 2021, he added.

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News

Stay on course and don’t go back to the past – Dr Indrajit Coomaraswamy

Published

4 hours ago

2023/03/24

Priyan

Former Governor of the Central Bank delivering the keynote address at a high profile Webinar hosted by the Central Bank of Sri Lanka today (24) said that Sri Lanka must implement the structural reforms proposed by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) without relaxing like in the past or else we will be in a deeper economic mess.

The webinar was titled ‘What is next for Sri Lanka in the wake of the IMF programme’

News

Sustainable economic development goals cannot be achieved unless attention is paid to mitigating climate change – Sagala Ratnayake

Published

4 hours ago

2023/03/24

Priyan

President’s Senior Adviser on National Security and Chief of Presidential Staff Sagala Ratnayake said sustainable economic development goals cannot be accomplished without taking steps to mitigate climate change.

He said this while participating in the 10,000 sapling planting program organized by the LEO Youth Vision 2048 Club and the LEO Club at the Royal College, Colombo on Thursday (23rd).

This program was organized in view of President Ranil Wickremesinghe’s birthday, which is today (24), and the required plants were distributed to the main schools of the Colombo District.

News

SF claims thousands of police and military personnel leaving

Published

16 hours ago

2023/03/24

Thilina Walpola

By Saman Indrajith

Thousands of police and military personnel had left the services recently as they did not want to carry out illegal orders, Field Marshal Sarath Fonseka told Parliament yesterday. According to the war-winning army commander 200 policemen have resigned during the past two months and 25,000 soldiers have left the army during the last two years.

“We urged the law enforcement and military officials not to follow illegal orders. We will reinstate them with back pay,” he said.

Fonseka also urged the President and the government MPs not to take people for fools.

“Sri Lanka owes 55 billion dollars to the world. Ranil’s plan is to borrow another seven billion during the next four years. So, in four years we will owe 62 billion to the world.

Ranil and his ministers ask us what the alternative to borrowing is. These are the people who destroyed the economy and society. They must leave. Then, we will find an alternative and develop the country,” he said, adding that the IMF loans had made crises in other nations worse.

“Ranil says that by 2025, we will have a budget surplus as in Japan, Germany and South Korea. These countries are economic power houses, and this comparison is ludicrous.”