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Home » ColumnsTwists and turns in Herath’s love for Gary
It was only the other day that Foreign Minister Vijitha Herath said how happy he was to see that Gary Anandasangaree had become Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada. This week, Minister Herath had to summon the Canadian High Commissioner and convey his Government’s “strong” rejection of “unfounded genocide allegations” against Sri Lanka [...]
A life is lost, but what are the lessons learnt?
My dear Saroja, I didn’t think I will write to you so soon but I feel I should. This is after hearing you speak about the sad passing away of a schoolgirl under questionable circumstances, some of which comes under your watch. Your response received widespread disapproval and you may be wondering what went wrong. [...]
State’s failure to ensure safety of road users has resulted in great human costs
The recent tragic bus accident near the Gerandi Ella waterfall in Ramboda has once again brought Sri Lanka’s road safety crisis into sharp focus. In the early hours of the morning, an SLTB bus plunged into a 100-foot precipice, claiming 23 lives and injuring 35 others. The scale of the tragedy is a stark reminder [...]
Swift and effective actions are imperative to enhance our exports
The admonition “Export or Perish” has never been more relevant than in today’s global conditions that threaten access to our main market—the USA—though its relevance was always pertinent for our trade-dependent economy. Uncertainty In spite of last Monday’s unexpected announcement by US President Donald Trump reducing tariffs on Chinese imports from a whopping 145 percent [...]
Good governance stood on its head; presidential fury over ‘political scraps’
In Sri Lanka’s electoral history, the first signs of tension on the political horizon appear more often than not at the ground level when seemingly monolithic majorities crack with the fissures inevitably widening if left untreated, spreading out to the national level as the Centre collapses within itself. Electoral dreams turning into nightmares To put [...]
Pradeshiya Sabha game of thrones heats up after President’s warning
The ongoing struggle to wrest control of the disputed Pradeshiya Sabha game of thrones took a dramatic turn on Wednesday after President Anura Kumara delivered a stunning warning to the Opposition not to steal the mandate given by the people to the Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna at this month’s local elections. But if the President was [...]
Big, small or yakety-yak, it’s still a messy world for man they make
Just the other day our nice neighbours nearly blew themselves up with their nuclear playthings so that our egg-headed bureaucrats could sit back in their cosy chairs and tell each other how to spell their president’s name in the English language. Either we kill each other or misspell names hardly worth the salt we can [...]
Battle intensifies over control of local councils
Govt. reaching six-month milestone: Movement on anti-corruption, but lagging behind in fulfilling promises Amid shaky unity, opposition parties hold talks to thwart NPP’s bid to govern 115 councils By our Political Desk While the local council elections are over, the tussle over who will form the administration of more than 150 councils where no party [...]
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