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Home » ColumnsMotor Traffic Dept. on bribe-free road
The Department of Motor Traffic has begun the process of making the place ‘bribe free’ by putting up signs saying, “Offering and accepting a bribe is a punishable offence.” The department is one of the government institutions which is notorious for solicitation of bribes to expedite the licence-issuing process. Commenting on the move, Transport Minister [...]
Look around, and vote
My dear exhausted voter, I am writing to you at a time when you are supposed to go and vote to choose your local government representatives in a couple of days. I am sure you must be wondering whether there is no end to these elections, this being the third election in less than seven [...]
Increasing exports: A tough task amid tariff uncertainties and recessionary conditions
The only certainty in the current global economy is its uncertainty. Our exports could be seriously eroded by the high US tariffs imposed on our exports, as the US accounts for as much as one half of our merchandise exports. Furthermore, the likely global recession could impact adversely on our exports to the rest of [...]
The NPP’s May Day rally; reflections on the slavishness of Sri Lankans
President Anura Kumara Dissanayaka’s ringing claim during the National People’s Power (NPP) May Day rally at the Galle Face Green this Thursday that his Government had ‘established the Rule of Law in Sri Lanka’ would be exceedingly funny if it was not so bizarre. Positively primitive scenes That claim is refuted particularly by the uncouth [...]
IMF offers a glimmer of hope in the struggle to mitigate impact of US imposed reciprocal tariffs
In the grand chessboard of global trade, it is often the small and vulnerable economies that become collateral damage. Sri Lanka, still reeling from the most severe economic crisis in its post-independence history, has now found itself ensnared in a geopolitical and economic showdown it neither caused nor can control. The recent decision by the [...]
What’s so darn secret about Indo-Lanka Defence Pact?
As India and Pakistan spar for war, where does Lanka stand? What’s so secret about the defence pact—and six others—signed with India’s Narendra Modi that it has to be kept so secret by the government, like a schoolgirl hiding her love letters from suspicious parents? Does it contain something so sinister, something so damaging to [...]
Tuesday’s local council polls serve as a testing ground for political parties
Ruling NPP/JVP likely to win most councils despite concerns over a possible dent in its popularity Big tussle for second place between faltering SJB and resurgent SLPP Presence of diplomats and Communist Party representatives from China and Viet Nam adds global significance to well-attended NPP/JVP rally Firebrand Indian delegate unleashes a blistering attack on Modi [...]
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