Sep 17 (FT) General Students� Union of Sri J'pura Uni has lodged a formal complaint with the Election Commission, accusing SJB Prez candidate Sajith Premadasa and his representatives of disseminating false information through election platforms. The complaint comes in the wake of unrest at the university, which led to its temporary closure on 12 Sept. Unrest reportedly arose from certain rumours circulating among students, and the uni administration�s decision to shut down was more..

Sep 17 (DM) An individual who had refused a handbill distributed by the SJB to support Prez candidate Sajith Premadasa has been allegedly threatened and assaulted by Nawalapitiya SJB organiser Sasanga Sampath Sanjeewa. The incident had been recorded on the CCTV camera system in the watch repair shop in Nawalapitiya town run by the victim�s father where the incident occurred. The young man had refused to accept the handbill distributed by organiser Sasanka Sampath more..

Sep 17 (DM) NPP MP Vijitha Herath hinted that the PM could be a female in a NPP govt. He said after the victory on Sept 21, a new Cabinet will be appointed with the powers vested with the Prez under Article 47.3 of the Constitution and parliament will be dissolved. "The Oppotion camp questions as to how the NPP can run a govt if Anura Kumara is elected Prez. After Anura becomes Prez, Lakshman Nipunaarachchi who is next in the list of preferential votes in the Colombo District will be sworn in more..

Sep 17 (CT) Disarray has once again surfaced within the ITAK over the endorsement of a prez candidate. A 5-member subcommittee appointed by ITAK�s Central Working Committee has unanimously decided to back Sajith Premadasa, issuing an official statement to that effect. However, MP S. Sritharan, a key figure in ITAK�s Central Committee, has openly declared that he does not support Premadasa. Party held meeting yesterday morning in Vavuniya, more..

Sep 18 (DM) It�s here at last. Today at midnight, election campaigning must necessarily come to an end. Hopefully cutouts of the varied candidates and the posters with their none too beautiful faces will not spoil our days and nights. Our brains will not be seared by the plethora of false election promises the candidates keep parroting. Our job is to sit down in the relative calm of electioneering and analyse the promises within the parameters of the IMF agreement signed between our govt and officials of that organisation. more..

Sep 18 (DM) For the first time in history, Sri Lankan voters have been given the self-destruction option of their country. If they use it, their choice could well send their country down the perilous path taken by a host of others, from Haiti and Zimbabwe to Venezuela- sadly, people in those countries did not have a free choice, unlike Sri Lankans who will cast their vote on Saturday. It is neither hyper-partisan nor scare-mongering to tell the people to avoid that eventuality. more..

Sep 18 (DM) Prez and Prez candidate Ranil Wickremesinghe stressed that Sri Lanka should only focus on economic stability now while constitutional reforms should be put to the back seat. �The most important thing is to continue with the economic reforms program which the country has undertaken. Is there an alternative to our program? There is no other way. The ethnic issue or the abolishing of Executive Presidency are not important now. more..

Sep 18 (CT) It seems that the concept of privacy, particularly in healthcare, remains an elusive ideal in Sri Lankan hospitals. Whether it�s in govt-run facilities or private institutions, patients are often stripped not only of their dignity but also their right to basic respect. Nurses shout out diagnoses across wards, robbing patients of any sense of confidentiality, while groups of medical students descend like an army to learn at the expense of an individual�s comfort. more..

Sep 18 (CT) In a few days� time SL people would have elected their most uncertain Prez. Through the prevailing socio-economic instabilities, Sajith Premadasa, Ranil Wickremesinghe or Anura Kumara Dissanayake will be elected President. This Uncertain Prez will lead a nation consisting of a majority of immature, dramatic, childish, ultra-sensitive and sentimental people. This vast majority are quite an unbelievable bunch. Whoever is elected this Uncertain Prez, they have my sympathy. more..

Sep 18 (DM) Entering the second Presidential fray Sajith Premadasa is one of the key contenders for the post of the 9th Executive President in SL. Being the Leader of the Opposition, Premadasa has fought vehemently against the govt run by his rival Rajapaksas and his former leader Ranil Wickremesinghe from whose UNP Premadasa broke away to commence a new political journey with the SJB or United People�s Power. more..

Sep 18 (DM) Statistically Muslims constitute only 9.3% of the national population. They are a close second to the SL Tamil strength of 11.1% according to 2012 Census. Statistical difference is only 1.8% unlike the figures before the July 1983 racial riots. Anti-Tamil pogrom led to Tamils emigrating from the island in noticeably large numbers. It must be added that Tamil migration increased the statistical percentages of both Sinhala and Muslim population in the country, but not their real numbers. more..

Sep 18 (DM) Sri Lankans will cast their ballots on Saturday. The country is at a crossroads politically and economically. People will avail of themselves the opportunity on Saturday to elect the next Executive Prez for a period of 5 years. Executive presidency, an idea mooted way back in 1966, came into effect on Sept 7, 1978. Incidentally, in the very same month of this year, people will elect the next Prez out of a basket of 38 candidates in the fray (Another candidate died after entering the fray). more..

Sep 18 (TM) As the countdown to SL�s pivotal Prez Elections progresses, voters find themselves torn between two desires. Firstly, there is an undeniable dynamic for a significant change. It follows a global trend against overthrowing the party or leader in power. This desire to change SL�s long-standing political culture and style of governance, has today morphed into an emotionally driven rejection of the existing status quo, with many younger voters passionately involved in politics for first time. more..

Sep 18 (Island) There has been an increase in the recirculation of videos of past incidents via the Internet to confuse the public ahead of the forthcoming presidential election, the police have said, requesting the public not to be misled by such misinformation campaigns. They have warned that stringent action will be taken against those who are responsible for circulating such videos. One can only hope that the public will be able to see through such propaganda ruses. more..

Sep 18 (CI) SL have a problem of plenty. This is not something that has been true for SL Test sides in recent years. Even stranger, the kind of players they have too many are seam bowlers. In their most recent Test at The Oval, SL's quartet of quicks decked England for 156 in the third innings and swung the whole match around. Now, at Galle, one of the most reliably dry tracks in the world, they can't play four specialist quicks. more..

Sep 18 (FT) SJB MP Eran Wickramaratne has revealed that once Sajith Premadasa becomes the Prez of SL on 22 Sept, the SJB will immediately get into strengthening governance, restructuring of debt, and renegotiating with the IMF after appointing a caretaker Cabinet prior to dissolving Parliament. �Soon after Sajith Premadasa becomes President, the Parliament will be dissolved after appointing a new Cabinet of Ministers. We will not wait till the end of the general election more..

Sep 18 (FT) Prez Ranil Wickremesinghe yesterday inaugurated the $ 27 million Western Automobile Assembly Ltd, (WAA) vehicle assembly plant in Kuliyapitiya. The state-of-the-art facility is now the largest vehicle assembly plant in South Asia. The first vehicle, a 15-seater passenger van, is expected to enter the market by the end of the month. Following the ceremony, Wickremesinghe unveiled a commemorative plaque and toured the factory, engaging in friendly conversation with staff. more..

Sep 18 (FT) Business magazine LMD reports that �optimism among corporates appears to be subdued as businesses continue to be marred by an uncertain and challenging macroeconomic environment.� �The latest results from LMD Business Confidence Index (BCI) survey reflects ongoing concerns about the economic outlook,� it adds. In August, the magazine notes, 16% of survey participants expressed optimism about the economy �improving� over the next 12 months, more..

Sep 18 (CI) A lot has happened since New Zealand last toured Sri Lanka. Back then, in 2019, the world was yet to be introduced to Covid-19, while the Lankans were only just recovering from Rangana Herath's retirement. Fast forward to the present, the pandemic is firmly in the rearview while Herath is gearing up to for duty as NZ's spin-bowling coach. That said, similarities also abound from that last tour. For one, like then, Sri Lanka enter buoyed by a historic result overseas more..

Sep 18 (BBC) �I thought I�d spend my whole life here, fighting a corrupt govt - but the younger generation did something.� Samadhi Brahmananayake is looking at the field where she spent months camped out with thousands of other demonstrators in SL�s capital in 2022. She can�t quite believe that luscious green grass has replaced the hundreds of protester tents that filled the field opposite the presidential secretariat. more..

Sep 18 (FT) Popular Prez candidate Anura Kumara Dissanayake�s NPP is being accused of thriving on dishing misinformation judging by accusations in two recent incidents. One was the misinformation on the shortage of passports and facts concerning the ePassport tender, and the other was on IT system upgrade at People�s Bank. Analysts said JVP MP Vijitha Herath and former MP Wasantha Samarasinghe went public about alleged irregularities only to be exposed that more..

Sep 18 (DN) Sri Lanka�s U-19 women�s cricket captain, Manudi Nanayakkara, says the upcoming Tri-Nation tournament in Australia is crucial preparation for next year�s U-19 Women�s World Cup. Speaking before the team left for Australia, she said playing against strong teams like Australia and New Zealand in their home conditions is very important. �We played a similar Tri-Nation tournament at home with Australia and England in Hambantota and Galle. more..

Sep 18 (DN) Dinara de Silva of St Bridget�s Convent made history by winning her second consecutive Women�s Singles crown at the 109th National Tennis Championship, held at the Sri Lanka Tennis Association courts in Colombo yesterday. De Silva, the reigning Women�s Singles champion from 2023, secured her second consecutive title by defeating former national champion Rukshika Wijesooriya in a thrilling Women�s Open Singles final. The match was a fierce three-set battle. more..

Sep 18 (DM) SL Air Force (SLAF) has clarified that it provides aircraft for Prez candidates' campaigns only on a payment basis, in line with standard procedures. This statement comes in response to media reports alleging the misuse of SLAF aircraft for election campaigning. Transparency International SL (TISL) recently voiced significant concern over the misuse of public resources during the Prez Election 2024. They alleged that SLAF aircraft have been utilized for campaigning purposes by more..

Sep 18 (TM) Speaker of the Parliament Mahinda Yapa Abeywardana said that he is not aware of any imminent plans to dissolve the Parliament, adding however that the Prez is also not obligated to consult him when making such a decision. Speculation has been there to the effect that President and independent Prez candidate Ranil Wickremesinghe may dissolve the Parliament on 20 or 21 Sept, more..

Sep 18 (FT) Chinnaia Rajeskumar, alias Ragavan, a close early associate of LTTE founder Velupillai Prabhakaran and one of the founding members of the LTTE, has cautioned the Tamil community against the divisive rhetoric of the common Tamil candidate. Ragavan expressed concerns over the dangerous influence of a section of diaspora-backed agendas. As a member of the broader diaspora himself, he felt it was important to clarify his position. Ragavan noted that racism in the country more..

Sep 18 (DM) SL must avoid making economically unsound promises ahead of upcoming elections, which could jeopardise long-term growth, the Institute of Policy Studies (IPS) warned. The think tank highlighted the country�s historical pattern of competitive populism during election periods, cautioning that such policies could lead to a decade of lost growth and economic decline. �Fiscally profligate promises ranging from wage increases to loan write-offs and welfare handouts are more..

Sep 18 (DN) Sri Lanka Women�s �A� team recorded their first win of the T20 series, defeating Bangladesh Women�s �A� team by 19 runs in the fourth T20 match held at Thurstan Grounds yesterday. After losing the first three matches, SL�s �A� team, led by Sathya Sandeepani, fought back. Sandeepani played a match-winning knock, scoring an unbeaten 46 off 33 balls with 3 fours and a six. She also shared a crucial 47-run partnership for the fifth wicket with Piumi Wathsala, more..

Sep 18 (DM) National People�s Power (NPP) presidential candidate Anura Kumara Dissanayake urged people to vote for him to form a govt free of fraud, corruption and misuse. He told the daily Mirror that NPP will create political stability soon after coming to power and that the programme to develop the economy will be implemented step by step afterwards. Dissanayake said the NPP is taking power on September 21 to move forward the country for a transformation of a new era. more..

Sep 18 (HM) As Sri Lankans prepare to elect a new prez, with voting on 21 Sept, the political landscape is more crowded and competitive than ever. Astrologers, who in past elections would typically appear on national television to make predictions, are conspicuously absent this time around � perhaps because a few lawmakers have argued that such predictions violate election laws, perhaps because few want more..

Sep 18 (AD) Commissioner General of Examinations Amit Jayasundara says that investigations are to be held tomorrow (18) into an incident where three questions similar to those on the Grade 5 Scholarship exam paper had allegedly been posted online via a model exam paper. He stated that if investigations uncover that the questions have in fact been leaked, these questions would be disregarded during the paper marking process. He said that an investigation was conducted more..

Sep 18 (DM) Extensive damages have been caused to the environmenal beauty of the Nuwara Eliya town by the participants in a propaganda rally organised by the Ceylon Workers' Congress (CWC) in support of the candidacy of President Ranil Wickremesinghe, Nuwara Eliya Municipal Council officials claimed. They said the participants of the rally had tread on the flower beds and plants maintained with much love and care to enhance the environmental beauty of the town. more..

Sep 18 (FT) As Sri Lanka�s Prez candidates make their final push before the mandatory silence period begins ahead of the 21 Sept election, major rallies are set to take place today at various key locations across the island. Independent candidate Prez Ranil Wickremesinghe and SJB Prez candidate Sajith Premadasa will both wrap up their campaigns in Maradana today evening. NPP Presidential hopeful Anura Kumara Dissanayake will conclude his campaign in Nugegoda. more..

Sep 18 (DM) GMOA has announced a trade union action today (18), targeting hospitals across the country, GMOA spokesman Dr. Chamil Wijesinghe said. He said the strike is set to begin at 8:00 am tomorrow, potentially disrupting the provision of medical treatment. Strike action was taken against the disciplinary actions that has been initiated against GMOA Uva Provincial Coordinator and Assistant Secretary Dr. Palitha Rajapaksa, without a formal complaint, Dr. Wijesinghe said. more..