News
Sabry says he abhors SL political culture
Former Minister Ali Sabry told Parliament on Friday that when Puttalam District Ali Sabry Raheem’s house was set on fire, some of those in legal circles had been jubilant thinking it was his residence.
“I have not earned from politics. I did not come here for that purpose. I have not stolen, not even a single cent from public money. Put all together with allowances, and benefits, the salary I am now getting is below that 10 percent of income I used to get. Before I accepted this post, I paid Rs 42 million as income tax for five years. I came here because I thought that I would be able to do something for this nation. What we have now is a nation of people who rejoices when someone else’s house is on fire. My question is whether we find answers for our problems when everything is set on fire.
“The rupee has fallen flat creating an economic crisis that torments people. This is not only a political crisis. It is a much bigger economic crisis. That is why I call on all to unite to get out of this problem. If you ask me whether I am scared, yes I am. I did not come here to fight. I know the fears of my children and my parents. If I do not have an assurance of the future of my children, yes I too have fears, but I do not fear for my life.
“We as a country spend three to four times our income. When the country gained independence in 1948, the ratio of number of persons to public servants was 113 to one. Today this ratio is 13 to one. This is a serious problem. Where does a government get money to maintain the public service? All avenues for forex to come here are shut down. Sri Lanka earned around USD 4.4 billion from tourism in 2018 with 2.3 million arrivals. All such sectors have collapsed. Now there is no point in pointing fingers at each other. We must resurrect this nation – we must rebuild it. For that we must come together. While I was holding the finance ministry portfolio, I was in touch with Dr Harsha de Silva for his insights.
“I hope you understand the true situation. My drivers too spent hours in queues outside fuel stations and returned home without fuel. There is a very popular opinion in the general public that we come here to eat in this canteen. Since the day I came to this parliament, I have gone to that place less than ten times. My family members do not come here to eat at the parliament restaurant. My children have not come here, they have not even come to the ministry.
“I call on people to question not only politicians. Ask others too whether they pay taxes. There are only 225 politicians here. Question those at the Departments of Inland Revenue and the Customs whether they pay taxes.
“Our total income is Rs 1.4 trillion and the expenditure is at Rs 3.4 trillion. This is the question. I do not think street protests with a utopian dream would bring solutions for such questions. We all must question ourselves whether we do the right thing.”
Members of the South Asian Journalists Forum have gathered at the University of New Delhi for a two day conference themed ‘Peace and Co-operation’.
Journalists from Bangladesh, Nepal, Sri Lanka and India are attending the conference hosted by the University of Delhi in collaboration with the India Chapter of SJF, and will deliberate on how the media can act as a catalyst for regional stability and mutual coexsistence.
A tree plantation campaign was also held at the Ghandi Bhawan premises of the University to mark the event and symbolize growing regional ties.
The Sri Lanka delegation is led by President of SJF’s Sri Lanka Chapter Rahul Samantha Hettiarachchi.
The Governor of the of Gujarat, Acharya Devvrat, along with the Deputy Chief Minister of Gujarat, Harsh Sanghvi, met with Prime Minister Dr. Harini Amarasuriya on Thursdy [February 05] at the Parliamentary Complex to discuss the arrangements related to the exposition of the Devnimori Sacred Relics of Lord Buddha, which have been brought to Sri Lanka under the patronage of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the Government of India.
These sacred relics of Lord Buddha were discovered during archaeological excavations conducted in the 1960s at the historic Devnimori site in Gujarat, the home state of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Until now, these relics had never been taken outside India. As a result of discussions held between President Anura Kumara Dissanayake and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi during his recent visit to Sri Lanka, the people of Sri Lanka have been granted this rare opportunity to venerate these sacred relics.
The exposition of the relics is being held for a period of seven days, from February 05 to February 11, at the Gangaramaya Temple in Hunupitiya, Colombo. Discussions were held between both parties regarding the arrangements related to this event.
The discussion was attended by Samar Nanda, Joint Secretary of the Indian Ministry of Culture; Dr. Satyanjal Pandey, Acting High Commissioner of India in Sri Lanka; Abhijit Halder, Director General of the International Buddhist Confederation; along with several others.
[Prime Minister’s Media Division]
The Indian Naval Ship (INS) GHARIAL made a port call in Colombo for operational turnarounds on 04 Feb 26. The Sri Lanka Navy welcomed the visiting ship in compliance with naval traditions.
Commanded by Commander Gaurav Tewari, INS GHARIAL is a vessel with a length of 124.8 meters.
During this visit, ten (10) Bailey Bridges, brought by ship, through the coordination of the High Commission of India in Sri Lanka, will be handed over to the Disaster Management Center. These bridges will provide temporary transportation links while bridges damaged across the island by adverse weather conditions are repaired.
The crew’s itinerary features scheduled goodwill activities with the Sri Lanka Navy, alongside visits to several tourist attractions across the island.
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