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Students at Piriven and Seelamatha educational institutions to receive President’s fund scholarships today (24)
Under the ‘Presidential Scholarship Program’ initiated as a concept of President Ranil Wickremesinghe, scholarships will be awarded to lay students, student monks, and Seela Matha studying in Piriven and Seela Mata educational institutions, at a ceremony to be held at Temple Tress under the patronage of President Wickremesinghe today (24)
The initiative extends financial support to student monks studying up to the Piriven (Ordinary Level) and lay students up to the G.C.E. (Ordinary Level), providing them with Rs. 9,000 initially and Rs. 3,000 monthly for 12 months.
Further support is available for student monks, Sheela Matha, and lay students who pass the Piriven or G.C.E. (Ordinary Level) exams and progress to the Pracheena or G.C.E. (A/L) examinations. They will receive Rs. 6,000 monthly, for up to 24 months or until their exams. Each recipient will receive a lump sum of Rs. 18,000 at the award ceremony to cover outstanding installments.
Installment payments of scholarship recipients not present at the ceremony will be deposited directly into the bank accounts .
The President’s Fund has committed nearly Rs. 300 million annually to this program, which aims to reach all 10,126 schools in the island, benefiting 106,000 students. It offers Rs. 6,000 monthly to advanced-level students for 24 months and Rs. 3,000 to students from grade 1 to grade 11. The first phase of this program is now nearing completion.
Singapore’s Leader of the Opposition in parliament, Pritam Singh, has been stripped of his title by the prime minister following a vote by lawmakers.
The vote took place on Wednesday in parliament, which is overwhelmingly dominated by the ruling People’s Action Party (PAP).
The move follows Singh’s conviction for lying under oath to a parliamentary committee. Singh has consistently maintained his innocence.
He remains a member of parliament and secretary-general of the largest opposition party, Workers’ Party (WP), but will lose privileges such as additional allowances and the right of first reply during parliamentary debates.
Singh’s case stands out as one of the only criminal convictions against a sitting opposition lawmaker. He was also the first person to hold the title of Leader of the Opposition.
Critics have previously accused Singapore’s government of using the judiciary to go after its political opponents – charges authorities have always denied.
On Wednesday, Indranee Rajah, the Leader of the House who had initiated the debate, said that Singh’s lies “strike at the trust” Singaporeans place in parliament and accused him of “failing to take responsibility”.
Singh defended himself during the debate, saying that his “conscience remains clear” and disagreed with the debate’s resolution that his behaviour was “dishonourable and unbecoming”. He also vowed to continue his work as an MP.
After three hours of debate, the parliament backed a motion that agreed Singh should not be the Leader of the Opposition. All 11 present WP members voted against it.
The parliament also agreed to review the implications for two other WP lawmakers at another time.
On Thursday, Prime Minister Lawrence Wong said in light of Singh’s conviction and the vote that it was “no longer tenable” for him to continue as the Leader of the Opposition.
He also invited the WP to nominate another of their MPs to take the title.
In response to BBC queries over text messaging, Singh responded with a single word: “#WeContinue”.
The WP said it will deliberate on the move and respond “in due course”. It previously said it would conduct an internal review of whether Singh contravened their rules.
The party holds 12 seats in Singapore’s 108-seat parliament.
The saga began in 2021, when WP lawmaker Raeesah Khan claimed in parliament that she had witnessed police misbehave towards a sexual assault victim.
She later admitted that her anecdote was not true, but said during a parliamentary committee investigation that the party’s leaders, including Singh, had told her to “continue with the narrative” despite knowing about the lie.
Khan has since resigned from the party and parliament, and was fined for lying and abusing her parliamentary privilege.
A criminal case was subsequently brought against Singh for lying under oath to the parliamentary committee during hearings for Khan’s case.
Last February a court found him guilty and fined him several thousands of dollars. It ruled that Singh’s actions were “strongly indicative” that he had not wanted Khan to clarify her lie.
But Singh, who maintained his innocence throughout the closely-watched trial, argued that he had wanted to give Khan time to deal with what was a sensitive issue.
In December he lost an appeal against the conviction.
[BBC]
The Bangladesh Cricket Board has issued a show cause notice to its director M Nazmul Islam over his “objectionable comments” in public against the country’s cricketers on Wednesday.
The notice came a couple of hours before the scheduled start of the BPL matches for the day, though the players’ body CWAB has called for a nationwide boycott on all forms of cricket unless Islam tenders his resignation.
The four first-division matches in the Dhaka Cricket League scheduled for the day didn’t start on Thursday morning, which caused serious concern in the BCB. ESPNcricinfo has learned that the Chattogram Royals and Noakhali Express players, who were supposed to play the first BPL match on Thursday, are sticking to the boycott.
“The board has already initiated formal disciplinary proceedings against the board member concerned,” the BCB statement read. “A show cause letter has been issued, and the individual has been instructed to submit a written response within 48 hours. The matter will be dealt with through due process and appropriate action will be taken based on the outcome of the proceedings.”
ESPNcricinfo understands that some board directors contacted the CWAB president Mohammad Mithun late on Wednesday night, offering that they would make Nazmul stand down from his role as the finance committee chairman. But Mithun said the cricketers’ call for the boycott remained in place.
The toss of the first BPL match on Thursday is at 12.30 pm local time. Once the start time for the match has passed, the CWAB leaders are supposed to hold a press conference, where they will present the BCB with their demands, including the resignation of the director.
[Cricinfo]
Sadio Mane fired Senegal into the final of the Africa Cup of Nations with a 1-0 victory over seven-time winners Egypt.
The two-time African Footballer of the Year broke the deadlock in the 78th minute on Wednesday when he let fly from just outside the penalty area inside the bottom left corner after Lamine Camara’s initial effort was blocked.
It sparked joy and relief among the Teranga Lions’ fans in Tangier, where the 2021 champions – after beating Egypt in the final – had taken the initiative but struggled to create clear chances against the Pharaohs’ stubborn defence.
Senegal captain Kalidou Koulibaly will miss the title match – against either host Morocco or Nigeria, who were to play in Rabat later on Wednesday – after picking up a yellow card that meant a suspension and then going off injured in the 23rd minute.
Koulibaly was booked in the 17th for a tactical foul on Omar Marmoush. The captain was also sent off in the group-stage win over Benin and consequently missed the win over Sudan. His tournament was effectively ended when he had to be replaced by Mamadou Sarr because of injury.
Nicolas Jackson had fired over just before Senegal displayed more attacking intent. Habib Diarra and Pape Gueye also had efforts saved.
Tensions boiled over when Mohamed Salah fouled his former Liverpool teammate Mane, but Senegal coach Pape Thiaw and Egypt counterpart Hossam Hassan managed to cool tempers.
Senegal’s Habib Diarra was booked for arguing, however, meaning he will miss the final, too.
[Aljazeera]
Singapore’s opposition leader stripped of title after conviction for lying
BCB issues show cause notice to Nazmul Islam but Bangladesh players firm on boycott
From behind bars, Aung San Suu Kyi casts a long shadow over Myanmar
Senegal beat Egypt 1-0 in AFCON semifinal as Sadio Mane scores late
Trump says he’s been assured killings in Iran ‘stopped’
Let’s build a new Sri Lanka upholding harmony, mutual respect by protecting the religious and cultural rights of others- PM
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