News

Kiriella alleges India withheld vaccines from Sri Lanka to spite govt.

Published

5 years ago

2021/06/9

By Saman Indrajith

Chief Opposition Whip Kandy District MP Lakshman Kiriella told Parliament yesterday that the excuse given by the government for its failure to get vaccines from India was a lie.

Kiriella said that the government ministers’ excuse for failing to get vaccines from India was that there had been a fire in the vaccine manufacturing factory on Jan 21. “That is not true. After Jan 21, India supplied 7,575,000 vaccine doses to seven other countries. It showed that the reason was that the current government had antagonised India.

Kiriella said: Field Marshal Sarath Fonseka was the first to stress the need to bring vaccines. We hoped that we could get AstraZeneca vaccine from India. But what has happened. Only 500,000 free vaccines could be obtained from India.

The government said that there had been a huge fire in the facility that produced vaccines in India and as a result we could not get vaccines. Thereafter, on Jan 21 India provided vaccines to seven other nations. It gave 500,000 vaccines to Canada on March 02, five million vaccines to England on March 05, 125,000 vaccines to Iran on March 10, 300,000 vaccines to Brazil on March 18, 1.5 million vaccines to Saudi Arabia on March 28, 100,000 vaccines to the Maldives on March 29 and 50,000 vaccines to Palestine on March 29. Those seven countries got vaccines after Jan 21. We could not get it because India is not on good terms with us after this government’s Port city project.

“The government has started inoculation in the upcountry areas. There were vaccination projects in Kundasale and Mahaiyawa. Those who get the vaccine have to sign a letter that they may not need the second dose of the Sputnik V vaccine. Signature is obtained on another letter saying that the government would not be responsible for the side effects of the vaccine. Innocent people after spending hours in queues are asked to sign the letter moments before getting the jab. I have heard that this particular letter has been printed at the Kundasale Pradeshiya Sabha. What authority do they have? Do the local government officials have the same authority as doctors? There is no proper inoculation plan. I request the government to give vaccines to plantation workers because they are vulnerable. There are eight apparel factories under BOI in Kundasale. One such factory has at least 500 employees. All factory workers in the country must be given.

The government does not have money. It took a loan from the World Bank in May. This government is a total failure. It has failed in both vaccination and fertiliser projects. They laughed at us when we were planning to make Wi-Fi available to the public free of charge. They protested when we tried to give free tablet computers to schoolchildren. If that project had been completed, today the children would have been able to make use of them while the schools are closed.

The government gave tax concessions to mega companies, that caused a loss of Rs. 800 million.

The government has no vision to prevent losses. For example, look at the recent incident of a fire aboard X-Press Pearl ship. I saw an article in the London Times on this incident and about the possibilities for the cause of the fire. In future, we will know who is responsible for the fire. But the problem is that now it is exposed that our harbours did not have the capacity to extinguish such fires in the vicinity of the country’s main port. This would bring down our ratings and that would result in an increase of insurance surcharge. The government must take action to rectify this immediately.”

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PM on inspection tour of newly renovated Colombo Central Bus Stand

Published

9 hours ago

2026/04/10

Priyan

The Colombo Central Bus Stand, which has a history of over six decades and had remained without a proper maintenance for many years, has now been renovated under the current government’s development programme and vested to the public. Following that, the Prime Minister undertook an inspection tour of the newly renovated Colombo Central Bus Stand.

Originally constructed in 1964, the bus stand was refurbished with modern facilities to meet current needs and was officially reopened to the public on April 8. The primary objective of this initiative is to provide passengers with a higher-quality and more comfortable transportation service.

During the renovation process, special attention has been given to the comfort and safety of women, which was commended by the Prime Minister. In particular, a modern rest area designed to ensure privacy for nursing mothers travelling from distant areas received special praise.

The Prime Minister also reviewed the newly introduced passenger seat reservation system and information services established to assist commuters. In addition, the modern surveillance unit and other security measures installed within the premises to ensure passenger safety were also inspected.

During the visit, the Prime Minister engaged in conversations with passengers at the bus stand and inquired about their views on the newly renovated facilities and the quality of transport services.

It was emphasized that the government’s objective is to transform public transportation into a safe, technologically advanced service that can be used with convenience by all citizens.

(Prime Minister’s Media Division)

Latest News

Sun directly overhead Nagawilluwa, Galgamuwa, Sigiriya, Palugasdamana and Mankerni about 12:11 noon today (10)

Published

10 hours ago

2026/04/10

Priyan

On the apparent northward relative motion of the sun, it is going to be directly over the latitudes of Sri Lanka from the 05th to 15th of April in this year.

The nearest areas of Sri Lanka over which the sun is overhead today (10th) are Nagawilluwa, Galgamuwa, Sigiriya, Palugasdamana and Mankerni about 12:11 noon.

News

Opposition tells Minister Kumara Jayakody to resign

Published

11 hours ago

2026/04/10

Thilina Walpola

Prof. Peiris

No-faith motion to be taken up today

Former Foreign Minister Prof. G. L. Peiris yesterday (9) said that President Anura Kumara Dissanayake should remove Energy Minister Kumara Jayakody unless the minister stepped down on his own.Prof. Peiris, addressing a press conference called by the Opposition, said that Jayakody couldn’t under any circumstance continue to serve as a minister after the Commission to Investigate Allegations of Bribery or Corruption (CIABOC) moved the Colombo High Court against the government member over a previous financial scandal.

Pointing out that Minister Jayakody had been indicted of a corrupt deal struck during the yahapalana regime, Prof. Peiris said it was wrong for the NPP to retain him as a minister, claiming that the offence was not committed during his tenure as a Cabinet minister in the current government.

Prof. Peiris and several other Opposition members dealt with the No-Confidence Motion (NCM) against Jayakody that would be taken up today (10) with the academic calling the vote an acid test for the NPP. Having campaigned on an anti-corruption platform at presidential and parliamentary polls, the NPP couldn’t protect Jayakody though he was widely believed to be close to President Dissanayake.

As the Manager of the Procurement and Import Division of the Ceylon Fertilizer Company, Jayakody is alleged to have committed the offence of corruption, according to CIABOC.

Jayakody has been accused of causing a loss of Rs. 8,859,708 to the State by influencing and exploiting the procurement process.

Following the serving of indictments on 27 March, the judge ordered Jayakody’s release on two personal bail bonds of Rs. 1 million each. The court directed that the defendant’s fingerprints be obtained and a formal report be submitted. The case has been scheduled for a pre-trial conference on 6 May.

Prof. Peiris stressed that the CIABOC action against Jayakody is central to the NCM primarily moved over the irregularities ridden coal procurement process launched in 2025 that caused severe disruption to the power generation. Responding to The Island query after the media briefing, Prof Peiris expressed surprise that the JVP/NPP accommodated a person under investigation by the CIABOC. Having taken an utterly irresponsible decision, the JVP/NPP were now playing down the developing issue, prof. Peiris said.

The entire government parliamentary group faced the prospect of having its image tarnished by defending Jayakody, the former lawmaker said.

Prof. Peiris said that they intended to build a campaign around the issues involving the energy minister to expose the government. With yet another electricity tariff hike in the offing due to the growing demand for thermal generation as a result of coal-fired Lakvijaya power plant’s failure to meet the requirement[RA1] , the energy minister and ministry’s performances have to be examined, Prof. Peiris said.The timely release of the Auditor General’s report on controversial coal procurement should compel the government to decide on the energy minister’s fate or be prepared to face the fallout.

By Shamindra Ferdinando