Midnight voice mail
A state-backed mobile operator has angered its subscribers by providing its list of subscribers to a leading ruling party candidate. The man, whose party is a constituent of the UPFA, is directing voice cuts over mobile phones to subscribers asking they vote for him. One of them received the message when he was woken up at 1.30 a.m. Alas, that’s one vote the candidate wont be getting.

From Sunday Times, 28 March 2010 – http://www.sundaytimes.lk/100328/News/nws_08.html

What do you have to say to The Shocking Behaviour of the Telecommunications Regulatory Commission of Sri Lanka?

What nonsense are you talking? Mahinda gave 500 million rupees to the LTTE. That is how he became President.

———-

Mahinda’s note to cabinet

Rebuilding the Nation under
Jayalanka Housing Programme
First Housing Programme
for North and East

The Reconstruction and Development Agency (RADA) has been directed by me to commence projects for equitable assistance to all needy communities, irrespective of whether they were affected by conflict or Tsunami, in the fields of housing, livelihoods, social and physical infrastructure.

One of the first projects identified for immediate and speedy implementation is the construction of housing units for conflict-affected communities in Kilinochchi, Mullaitivu, Trincomalee, Batticoloa, Ampara, Vavuniya and Mannar districts. Housing requirements obtained from 42 GN divisions in these districts amounted to 1200 housing units. The Board of Management of RADA granted approval to invite offers from consultants and contractors in the area to implement this project. Funds for the project are to be obtained from the Consolidated Fund.

Accordingly, offers were solicited from prospective consultants and parties willing to undertake housing construction in the stipulated areas. GS Builders & Consultants of Vavuniva was selected as the Consultant for the project.

B&K Holdings (Pvt) Ltd of No. 437A, 3rd Lane, Hirunavukulam, Thandikulam, Vavuniya, which offered the lowest quote for a 500 sq. ft housing unit at Rs 624,725/(exclusive of VAT) was selected as the Contractor for the construction of 400 housing units at Trincomalee. Another 400 units in Batticaloa was awarded to Everest Civil Engineering Services of 113/1, Mill Road, Ukulangkulam, Vavuniya, at the same rate of Rs 624,725.00 (exclusive of VAT).

Housing projects in Trincomalee and Batticaloa are in progress, and the total cost estimate for both projects is Rs 499,780,560/-. With the addition of 400 housing units to be implemented in other districts shortly, the entire cost estimate for the required 1200 housing units is Rs 757,166,000/- (inclusive of consultancy fees).I seek the approval of the Cabinet of Ministers to proceed with the construction of the 1200 housing units as envisaged above.

August 2, 2006
Sgd
Mahinda Rajapakse
President

P. B. Jayasundera sheds light

WHEN The Sunday Leader spoke to P.B Jayasundera regarding the secret deal significantly he did not deny meeting Emil Kanthan but referred instead to a meeting at ousted Minister Mangala Samaraweera’s house and stated he had met people but did not know who they were.

Q: Your name has transpired as having been present at meetings..

A: I can only say I have not participated in any discusions with the LTTE

Q: With Emil Kanthan?

A:I haven’t participated with anybody because I attend various discussions with various people. I don’t know the people who come to those meetings and from which group.

Officially Minister Mangala Samaraweera invited us for a meeting so we have gone, so there must have been people but we went as officials. But our dealings are as officials. So I don’t know why Tiran Alles made that statement because my dealings with him was only as chairman RADA, not beyond that.

By Sonali Samarasinghe

http://www.lankaenews.com/English/news.php?id=4387

“If the law worked in SL, Mahinda Rajapakse would have been convicted of treason and sentenced to death. That is how it is done in other countries when you collaborate with the enemy during wartime.”

RIGHT, let me at least try to comprehend what you said. collaborating with the enemy is i guess killing them on the battle field??
bit confused still….. haaaang ooooon, I GET IT!! USA doen’t collaborate with their enemy. that’s why they still haven’t caught Osama Bin Laden! lol

you genius heshan!

It’s more likely that the messages were sent out by the telephone companies for free as a goodwill measure, as Dialog Telekom claims. Telephone companies are well within their rights to send out such messages. This is not banned or restricted by any law in effect in Sri Lanka.

“errr no, they war mongered and purposely sabotaged the CFA. even you agree that ltte prevented northern tamils from voting since they wanted the war.”

If the law worked in SL, Mahinda Rajapakse would have been convicted of treason and sentenced to death. That is how it is done in other countries when you collaborate with the enemy during wartime.

There are a very large number of other IMPORTANT issues at hand like corruption, injustice, discrimination, oppression of the people (rich and poor alike) and their basic human rights and freedoms, to mention a few. Please concentrate on these issues which are more pressing and only second to the problem of ever rising cost of living.

The particular message may or may not be an abuse of “position” for “political” or “non-political” purposes. Please take it in a lighter vein. If it is seen as “abuse of position for political purposes then it falls under the catogory “corruption”.

Over to you, members of the forum.

As we saw during the CFA, the LTTE was containable. They only retaliated when provoked”

errr no, they war mongered and purposely sabotaged the CFA. even you agree that ltte prevented northern tamils from voting since they wanted the war.

As we saw during the CFA, the LTTE was containable. They only retaliated when provoked.

Sri Lankans lets now get rid of all these maniacs……give Sri Lanka a break….a leader with Dicipline and Good governance is what we need…..

Yep, they did a terrific job over the last 20 years…

“The president was duty bound to remove the LTTE and he did his job, which is commendable and he deserves due credit for it.”

It would have been better if the President had taken care of affairs in the South, and let the Northern Tamils/Diaspora Tamils handle the LTTE. As we see now, there is a great agitation in the South for better governance. Whether such agitation will materialize into anything significant is a question in itself, seeing as how the avenues to change have been hijacked one after another by the present Rajapakse administration.

Well said. It is common knowledge that Mahinda Rajapakse deposited tsunami money in his sister’s bank account, and when Ranil pressed for investigations, MR filed a fundamental rights application with the Supreme Court. Under Sarath Silva’s orders, all further investigations into the bank account were dropped.

Even after 5 years, tsunami victims ( a large number of them) are still proper shelter, although substantial sums of funds were provided by NGOS, dontations organisations – as transparency and other international bodies point that out a collossal amount of those funds have openly been abused by presdient and MR administration

- unlike previous regimes there is almost no media freedom for journalists in the country as they repeately report (please read the new articles that are being published on web and lanken new papers)

-SMS sending could cost lots of monies while the sums can properly be used for good things such as providing the rations those who re really in need ( I do believe as it is the case in the Europe, sms sending is not free of charge)

- A large majority of middle class of the country cant afford their day today life with sky high prices of most essentials needs today than ever before in lanken markets.

- MR and the co is said to be abusing state properties and even funds for their own benfits rather than making use of those monies for the benfit of the poor people who are the majority of our motherland

- Even after 6 months, he is still going on tours to manipulate the masses by his own words – sinhala slangs, how he has set free the country from terror. As every right thinking person could feel, if the previous regime under CBK, slain lanken hero politico great Kadirgamar could not win the hearts of the US; EU, Canada, India and the other countries to ban LTTE and name it as terror organisations ( this was one of the most important factors at winning the war)even much earlier, nothing would have gone to lead for a win; means winning the war agaisnt LTTE terror within lanka was a collective task rather than getting the sole pride on him… Army commander and the other forces who heartely sacrificed their lives shodl be given the real credit for fulfiling the tast to the end than President himself is trying to grab the credit further manipulating the masses of the country…

If he is a genuine leader, he should prove to the masses before long that he is not a corrupted leader but his henchman were corrupt.

If he can allocate a large sum of funds for his son´s projects why not he think about the most alarming matters like, pay hikes and price reductions..

I get all these info by reading the articles but being away from the last two decades, I cant know the real life that one lives in the mother land. But if all the indicators prove that the current regime is over corrupted .. we d better give SF a chance to go against another war- but this time against CORRUPTION.

The president was duty bound to remove the LTTE and he did his job, which is commendable and he deserves due credit for it. However, that does not give him carte blanche to do whatever he pleases and misuse public/private property and/or impinge upon citizen rights. Sending an SMS text may not be a big deal but it’s an indicator of attitude, and it’s not a good one.