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The new Secretaries to State Ministries received their letters of appointment from the Secretary to the President Dr. P. B. Jayasundera at the Presidential Secretariat today (09).

The newly appointed Secretaries are:

In order to build a pious and virtuous society the rule of law must be strictly adhered to, the Chief Incumbent of Kotte Raja Maha Viharaya Ven. Aluth Nuwara Anurudda Thero said.

President Gotabaya Rajapaksa visited the temple this evening (07) and the Thero made these observations delivering a special sermon before the gathering.

It is everyone’s wish to see a country where all can live without fear or intimidation, the Thero said.

The Thero describing the importance of working unhesitatingly towards this end said the entire Maha Sanga will invoke their blessings over the steps taken by the President.

President Rajapaksa later arrived at the Abhayarama Temple in Narahenp…

The people of this country look at President Gotabaya Rajapaksa as a leader who can overcome all challenges the country having and ensure security of the Motherland, the Chancellor of University of Kelaniya Ven. Dr. Walamitiyawe Kusaladhamma Thero said.

President Rajapaksa this morning (07) visited Vidyalankara Pirivena and paid homage to the relic shrine at the premises.

Later, President called on Ven. Walamitiyawe Kusaladhamma Thero and the Chancellor of the Sabaragamuwa University Ven. Prof. Kumburugamuwe Vajira Thero.

“The visit of the President to the sacred site of Vidyalankara is regarded as a an honor”, Ven. Kusaladhamma Thero said.

The Maha Sanga present at the occasion chanted Seth Pirith and invoke blessings on the President.

The President later visited Kelaniya Raja Maha Viharaya and met Chief Incumbent Ven. Kollupitiye Mahinda Thero and Ven. Bengamuwe Nalaka Thero and other Maha Nayaka Theros.

The President would always receive the blessings of Maha Sanga to continue with his good work responsibilities, Ven. Kollupitiye Mahinda Thero observes.

Ministers and Members of Parliament representing the Gampaha district were also present.

New Governors for the Eastern and North Central Provinces were sworn in before President Gotabaya Rajapaksa at the Presidential Secretariat this afternoon (04).

Ms. Anuradha Yahampath took oaths as the Governor of the Eastern Province while Prof. Tissa Vitharana was appointed as the Governor of the North Central Province.

The Ambassador of the United Arab Emirates in Sri Lanka Ahmad Ali Al Mualla paid a courtesy call on President Gotabaya Rajapaksa at the Presidential Secretariat today (03).

Engaging in a cordial discussion with the President, the Ambassador assured his country’s commitment to further enhance bilateral relations between the two countries.

The UAE Ambassador while commending the plan of action with a new vision of the President offered his optimum assistance to make it a success.

A delegation headed by the New Zealand High Commissioner to Sri Lanka Joanna Kempkers also called on President Rajapaksa today afternoon.

They assured their country’s commitment to inhance mutual benefits by further developing bilateral relations.

Government officials have been instructed by His Excellency the President to take immediate action to ensure the safety and welfare of the people during disaster situations such as floods and landslides resulting from the prevailing adverse weather conditions in many districts of the country.

Ministry officials, District Secretaries and Divisional Secretaries have been provided with circular instructions to coordinate with the Ministry of Defence and the Disaster Management Centre to be prepared for rapid response in the event of floods, landslides, rock falls etc occurring due to heavy rainfall, and to take immediate disaster mitigation and public welfare measures. The monitoring and coordination of these measures will take place under the supervision of the Hon. Prime Minister.

The Canadian High Commissioner in Sri Lanka David Mckinnon called on President Goatabaya Rajapaksa at the President’s Office today (02).

The High Commissioner extended his greetings to the President on behalf of the Government of Canada.

Director-General of the Department of Asian Affairs of the Foreign Ministry of China Wu Jianghao also met President Rajapaksa today.

Wu Jianghao is a Special Representative of the State Council of the People’s Republic of China and has previously served as an Ambassador to Sri Lanka.

The Government of Sri Lanka, having taken serious note of the alleged criminal incident concerning a locally recruited staff member of the Swiss Embassy in Colombo, on Monday, 25 November 2019, immediately ordered a thorough investigation into this matter.

This evening (1 December 2019) Secretary/Foreign Relations Ravinatha Aryasinha together with Secretary/Defence Major General (Retd.) Kamal Gunaratne and relevant officials met with the Ambassador for Switzerland in Sri Lanka Hanspeter Mock and the Deputy Chief of Mission, and briefed them on the results of the investigation by the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) of the Police.

While the Embassy had not presented the alleged victim to be interviewed by the law enforcement officials despite their request to do so, based on the information provided by the Swiss Mission on Friday 29 November 2019, the investigation was nevertheless conducted. The Ambassador was presented with clear evidence that the sequence of events and timeline of the alleged incident, as formally presented by the Swiss Mission on behalf of the alleged victim to the CID, did not in any way correspond with the actual movements of the alleged victim on that date, as borne out by witness interviews and technical evidence, including Uber records, CCTV footage, telephone records and the GPS data.

In light of the incontrovertible evidence presented by the law enforcement authorities to the Swiss Mission, it was underlined that further investigations would need to be continued to ascertain the actual facts surrounding this allegation, for which the alleged victim will have to be interviewed by the law enforcement authorities. Given that the alleged victim had also claimed that she had sustained injuries during the alleged abduction, it was noted that she should be presented for a medical examination by a Judicial Medical Officer in Sri Lanka.

The Embassy has been requested to cooperate fully with the Government of Sri Lanka to establish the veracity of the claims relating to this alleged incident.

Two Army Staff officers who received training at the same military camp in India met after many years as political leaders today.

They did not meet to discuss politics.

One of the two friends is the incumbent President of Sri Lanka, Gotabaya Rajapaksa. The other one is the Minister of State for Road Transport and Highways of India, Dr. V. K. Singh.

Around 15 other military officers from the same military training joined the two dignitaries. The gathering turned out to be a walk down the memory lane with cherished reminiscences.

Most of these army personnel served in Sri Lanka as members of Indian Peace Keeping Force. They bade adieu as old friends.

President Gotabaya Rajapaksa visited the Sri Lankan High Commission office in New Delhi today (30) and planted a tree sapling to mark the occasion l.

President Rajapaksa discussed with officials the importance of performing diplomatic functions in order to enhance cooperation between the two countries.

The meeting was attended by the Sri Lankan High Commissioner in India Austin Fernando and the High Commission staff.

President also met the Chairman of the Mahabodhi Society and the Chief Incumbent of Sanchi Chethiyagiri Vihara Ven. Banagala Upatissa Thero.

The current status of the Sanchi Chethiyagiri Vihara and its future development work was discussed and the Thero stressed the need to display information about the Vihara in Sinhala for the benefit of pilgrims.

Thero also expressed views on measures taken to construct a training center for the Indian novice monks.

A meeting between President Rajapaksa and National General Secretary of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) Ram Madhav was also held today.

BJP General Secretary extended his good wishes to the President.

The editor of The Hindu, Suhasini Haidar also called on the President