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| Sunday, 5 September 2004 |
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Features |  |
| News Business Features Editorial
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Angry young man on a mission Weekend Politics by Suraj and Viraj The latest episode on the Kumari Cooray story looked disastrous on the political career of UNP's former Labour Minister Mahinda Samarasinghe. Kumari's brother Sujith, the son of former UNP State Minister, Mervyn J.Cooray created havoc at the office of the Chairman of the Panadura Municipal Council last week when he dashed Samarasinghe's photograph on the ground.
Sujith returned to the country just three weeks ago from the United States and was out of Colombo when the alleged Kumari-Rauff affair was made public. He had never endorsed an earlier friendship between his sister Kumari and Mahinda Samarasinghe. On his return he was met by one of his close associates who briefed him on the developments that were unfolded regarding Kumari and Rauff and the subsequent disclosure that it had been Mahinda Samarasinghe who had introduced Kumari to Rauff Hakeem. Sujith's friend also briefed him that over one hundred youth who were promised jobs in Korea and Italy by Mahinda Samarasinghe as Labour Minister were searching for a Pradeshiya Sabha member, as they had paid over Rs. 10 million in total to secure those jobs, which had not been honoured. Following these disclosures, Sujith Cooray had visited the Vice-Chairman of the Panadura Municipal Council to discuss these issues. Accompanied by the Vice-Chairman he had made a courtesy call on the Chairman and had seen Mahinda Samarasinghe's photograph hanging on the wall. Sujith had warned the Chairman to remove the photo saying it was the man in the photograph who was responsible for many a wrong to his family and the youth of Kalutara, and had left the room. Last week when Sujith visited the Chairman's room, he had seen the picture still hanging there. An angered Sujith had yelled to the Chairman and dashed the photograph on the ground. The Chairman had not reported this incident to the Panadura Police though the staff present at the scene had requested so, as damage had been caused to State property. Officer-in-Charge of the Panadura Police, Inspector Ilangakoon confirmed to the Sunday Observer that despite a visit made to the scene of the incident by his cops, the Chairman was reluctant to make an official complaint. Sujith Cooray met the Sunday Observer last Friday at its Editorial Department to talk about why he dashed Samarasinghe's photograph on the ground. Whenever Samarasinghe's name was mentioned, he looked an angered man. "You see, this fellow Mahinda, whose birth name is Micheal, had a friendship with my sister Kumari, which I opposed", he said adding that he nor his parents had control over Kumari after she was given in marriage. Young Cooray claimed that it was Samarasinghe who had introduced Kumari to Rauff Hakeem. "I stand by that position because I know it exactly and I have nothing against Rauff Hakeem who had been put into difficulty by this man", Sujith asserted. He went onto say that 'henchmen' of a former Minister had collected money from over one hundred youth in Kalutara on the assurance of giving them jobs in Korea and Italy. "We have proof and there are police complaints that each of these victims have paid over Rs. 100,000 to the henchmen. He said the key culprit was a Pradeshiya Sabha member, a confidant of the Minister who had gone into hiding to evade arrest. Sujith added that he knew where these huge sums of money ended though henchmen collected it from the victims. He warned that wherever or whenever he would come across a photograph of Mahinda Samarasinghe, he would not hesitate to destroy it to avenge the damage caused by Mahinda to his family and that of Rauff Hakeem. Sujith challenged Samarasinghe to try to continue his politics in Kalutara in the future. As the UNP celebrates its 58th anniversary on a religious scale at the party headquarters in Kotte, party seniors are to urge the party leader Ranil Wickremesinghe to rid the party of sex perverts who have brought disrepute to the party in the recent past. A very senior UNP MP in Colombo said that while people like Duminda Silva have allegedly molested young girls, there was another man known as a sex broker who introduced women to others to get favours done. UNP seniors expressed grave concern about the party having to face allegations of sex-related offences for the first time in its history. Misappropriation of funds Meanwhile, the Criminal Investigations Department probing the misappropriation of funds at an institution under the Labour Ministry during the two-year UNP regime have bared that a former minister had occupied the most expensive hotel in Dubai whenever he visited the Middle East to examine the welfare of migrant workers to which monies had been paid by this institution. The CID has also uncovered that several females had visited and occupied this hotel during that period. The ministry is now in the process of getting details of additional meals and other facilities ordered to the room occupied by this former minister during his visits to that plush hotel in Dubai. UNP stalwart in the Colombo District, Gamini Lokuge, now overseas accompanying his wife for medical treatment, has been alerted that a party parliamentarian from Kalutara was trying to sneak into his Kesbewa electorate to organise and contest future elections. This MP earlier tried to jump to Colombo West, but the party leader did not give him the nod. That earlier move by this MP caused heartburn to Colombo West UNP Organiser Ajith Cabraal, who gave up UNP politics permanently and returned to his business activities. The chief guest at today's UNP celebrations in the 58th year will be former President Dingiri Banda Wijetunga with the oldest living former ministers Edwin Hurulle and Nissanka Wijeratne as guests of honour. Even those who have left the party are invited other than those who hold positions in the present government. Sirisena Cooray and Ganeshalingam will also be there.These stalwarts will be eager to see the men who have tarnished the image of their party with allegations involving the sex trade. New MP for Kurunegala District Akila Viraj Kariyawasam, a close confidant of the party leader, has earned the wrath of others in the party over a remark he made at a meeting in Kurunegala that because of UNP pressures, the Government was forced to give jobs to unemployed graduates. People at the meeting had jeered him and a few unemployed graduates who were at the meeting had replied saying that it was an election pledge of the UPFA Government and the UNP was trying to sabotage the effort. Some UNP seniors who were at the meeting had sarcastically scoffed at him as he had got nominations from Kurunegala district over many seniors in the party because of his close association with the leader. Thereafter, he had left the meeting without informing others. Minister loses his cool Minister Nimal Siripala de Silva, who was accused of a suspected deal in the Thriposha contract, called a press conference last week and blamed certain organised sections in the party for tarnishing his reputation. He refuted all the allegations levelled against him stating that he has no authority over the Committee appointed to finalise the tender. This Committee had decided to offer the tender to a bidder. Minister Siripala, who saw the newspaper reports implicating him, lost his cool over the baseless allegations. Meanwhile, the SLFP marked the 53rd anniversary of the party by laying a foundation stone for new party headquarters at Battaramulla on Wednesday. Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapakse laid the foundation stone at 10.31 a.m., the auspicious time as the President was overseas. Though the SLFP was laying the foundation for a new headquarters, powerful Ministers and seniors were notable absentees. A Deputy Minister whispered to the SLFP General Secretary and Minister Maithreepala Sirisena that if the President was here, more Ministers would have attended the ceremony to show their faces to the President. Minister Sirisena, as usual, attended the Cabinet meeting at 6.00 p.m. When he arrived at the President's House, he realised that the meeting has been postponed for Thursday. However, he could not attend the Thursday meeting due to a prior engagement. Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapakse chaired the weekly Cabinet meeting but there were notable absentees. The meeting looked dull with no confrontations on burning issues. IDs mandatory at elections All parties agreed to make the National Identity Cards mandatory at voting. Elections Commissioner Dayananda Dissanayake and Commissioner of the Registration of Persons Department P. B. Abeykoon met leaders of political parties on Thursday morning. UNP Deputy Leader Karu Jayasuriya objected to making identity cards mandatory at voting as it can cause another problem in the country. He recalled the 1988-90 incidents where a political party collected identity cards and warned of a repetition. But Elections Commissioner Dissanayake stressed the importance of making the ID or another document mandatory to conduct a clean election and to ensure democracy in the country by preventing vote rigging. He said the plan was proposed far back as 1953, to hold a clean election. Thereafter, party leaders agreed with the proposal and they asked Commissioner Abeykoon whether he can provide identity cards to 18 per cent of the population within a year. Replying to them he said that he could do it if all the facilities are given to him immediately. Thus, the meeting ended with a sigh of relief. Minister of Power and Energy Susil Premajayanth, giving 600 appointment letters to Petroleum Corporation employees who were on contract, said that the CPC will never be privatised. He said no one had any right to privatise the CPC as it was nationalised by the late Prime Minister Sirimavo Bandaranaike in the interest of the country and the people. Meanwhile, JVP Propaganda Secretary Wimal Weerawansa who was going around the country holding seminars under the theme "Who are the real enemies of peace" temporarily stopped the program as it did not gain much publicity in the media. The National Patriotic Movement was reactivated and its meeting in Puttlam attracted large crowds. A new organisation was formed in the East under the name 'Nagenahira Udanaya' to protect the rights of the Sinhalese and Muslims. Political circles said that JHU and JVP members were behind it. New Left Front Leader Dr. Wickremabahu Karunaratne, whose trade union is battling for the protection of the rights of 595 Bata employees, blamed the JVP at a meeting with other unions. A protest was conducted on Wednesday with the help of other unions where Dr. Wickremabahu blamed the JVP for maintaining silence when workers are harassed. |
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| Editorial | Security Produced by Lake House |
The
Chairman, Deepthi Abeywickreme, a confidant of Samarasinghe was
stunned at the action of Sujith Cooray, a fearless young man in UNP
politics. The Sunday Observer today unfolds the story behind the anger and
action of Sujith Cooray.
