Transport, Highways and Mass Media Minister Dr. Bandula Gunawardena presenting the ‘Asidisi’ Media Scholarship to a journalist at the Scholarship Awards Ceremony held at the auditorium of the Mass Media Ministry yesterday. Mass Media Ministry Secretary and Lake House Chairman Anusha Palpita was also present on this occasion. The ‘Asidisi’ Media Scholarships are awarded to selected journalists annually as a non-refundable financial grant by the Mass Media Ministry for them to follow academic courses which are related to the journalistic career with the objective of equipping all journalists with the knowledge, skills and attitudes. Picture by Gayan Pushpika

Mass Media Minister Dr. Bandula Gunawardena yesterday said that the Chartered Institute for Journalists will be set up next year aiming to strengthen the professionalism of journalists.

He added that the media persons have been rendering enormous service to society and it is the government’s duty to strengthen journalists with knowledge.

Speaking at the presentation of Asidisi scholarship scheme for journalists at the Media Ministry premises yesterday, the Minister added that a journalist with humane values should be created

“The Media Ministry has made an investment by implementing this scholarship for journalists which cannot be accessed in financial terms. A journalist should have in depth knowledge on all areas if he wants to succeed,” he said.

The Minister added that the country has seen vast deterioration in terms of moral and cultural values.

The Minister added that people of all communities should have a freedom to have a political view of their choice. “That freedom was denied in the country. Every journalist should have humane qualities. Former Minister Anura Priyadarshana Yapa brought this Asidisi Scholarship concept. He deserves the credit for initiating this concept”, the Minister said.

The Minister added that the Information Technology, Bio Technology and Engineering Technology are becoming popular in the country.

Mass Media Ministry Secretary and Lake House Chairman Anusha Palpita said that this scholarship scheme was implemented by former Minister Anura Priyadharshana Yapa when he was the Media Minister.

“Whichever the government in power, this programme has been continuing and more and more journalists were benefitted by this programme, he said.

Over 980 journalists have been granted this scholarship so far and the 49 journalists are also given scholarship for this year too, Palpita said.

“Asidisi” Scholarship Program annually organized by the Ministry of Mass Media with the objective of equipping all journalists with the knowledge, skills and attitudes to establish the art of professional journalism, would have its Scholarship Awarding Ceremony this time on Wednesday, December 21, 2022 at 09:00 a.m. at the auditorium of the Ministry of Mass Media. With the chief participation of Dr. Bandula Gunawardena, Hon. Minister of Mass Media and participation of Mr. Anusha Palpita the Secretary to the Ministry of Mass Media.

The purpose of this project is to create environment for journalists to improve their skills via training courses and encouraging them to cope up with the challenges in the twenty first century.

Journalists, Freelance Journalists, Provincial Journalists Web Journalists and Media Technicians within the ages of 18-55 who have obtained the Identity Card issued by the Department of Government Information and have completed three years of full- time or part- time service in recognized electronic and print media institutions in the island would be awarded with this scholarship on non-refundable basis.

A maximum amount of two hundred thousand rupees (200,000.00) for undergraduate and postgraduate courses or one hundred thousand rupees (100,000.00) for short or long term certificate courses, diplomas and advanced diploma courses would be offered under this scholarship program. Scholarship recipients can take media related courses conducted by recognized universities and higher educational training institutions.

Under this scheme of scholarship, the journalists have the opportunity to reap its benefits twice without paying any amount of money and the journalists who have successfully completed the course can apply for the second chance in five years after being qualified for the 1^st time.            

Journalists who are eligible for the scholarship will be paid 50% of the course fee at the beginning of the course as the first installment, 25% of the remaining 50% as the second installment and the remaining 25% at the submission of the certificate after the successful completion of the course. 

The beneficiaries were selected after interviewing the applicants by a committee elected by the Secretary to the Mass Media Ministry.

Among the journalists who had applied for the scholarship this time, the Ministry of Mass Media has taken steps to offer this scholarship to everyone who has fulfilled the qualifications. 

President Ranil Wickremesinghe said that the country has had to face adverse repercussions today due to the short sighted popular decisions taken in the past and unpopular decisions have had to be taken for the future prospects of the country.

The President made this observation yesterday (08) taking part in the Third Reading debate of the Budget proposals for the financial year 2023. He said further that a Parliamentary Select Committee will be established on a resolution by the Parliament to look into those who led the economy to bankruptcy with their incorrect fiscal policies.

President Ranil Wickremesinghe further said; “Some members discussed the Mahaweli lands. The lands of the state were under the Land Commissioner until 1977. Due to the rapid development, some of the urban and rural lands were brought under the Urban Development Authority, Mahaweli Authority, and several other corporations. But now, no one knows as to where those lands are or what they are doing with them.

“Hence, the Government is concerned to find out as to where the Government lands are, and to whom they have been given. Although this is done through the Divisional Secretary, he cannot issue lands as he wishes and a committee will be appointed in this connection. The government hopes to cancel all those grants of lands. Some spoke against taking over Mahaweli lands but they were all under the Land Commissioner earlier. By now people have been settled in most of the lands under those institutions. But the rest have not been handed over to the Land Ministry by the Agriculture Ministry. Some institutions are still in the process of settling the people in those lands. We don’t have any issue with them. They can continue to develop them and settle people in them.

“However the Government owned lands in Mahaweli B, C and H zones and lands in Anuradhapura and Polonnaruwa should be identified and made available for the public to use. Although agriculture is developed by both Mahaweli Authority and Agriculture Ministry, so far we have not been able to exceed the harvest above 6 Mt of paddy per hectare. That is the government’s concern and nobody needs to worry about this Government’s move. In addition, in accordance with the Education Minister’s request, we agreed to establish nongovernmental universities. Hence when we meet on 12 and 13, let’s discuss this matter with the former education ministers and other MPs and let’s reach a decision by next January. Thereafter we can establish those universities. I would like to request the Speaker, as if we discussed earlier to appoint five youth to each Ministerial Consultative Committee, we can soon finalise the criteria of selecting them without delay. If we delayed it, the youth would inquire as to what has happened to it.

“After the discussions with China, we can go to the next step if we handle the economy somehow or other now with difficulty. If we can’t show the profits in such a situation we also suffer losses, nobody outside would aid us. The Prime Minister and I discussed this matter and we have to make decisions which are not popular for the sake of the country. The other countries at a time made those decisions not popular but were beneficial to their countries. We have not increased the electricity bills since 2013 and all of us are responsible for the loss. Now what are we going to do? If you have a deficit of Rs. 400 billion, what are you going to do? There are only 03 options: print money, put on VAT or charge directly.

Another matter is the Banks’ issue. If the people do not settle loans, the banks will have to auction their property. But the issue is that the people too have no money to buy such property. Therefore, we are discussing with the IMF to solve these issues. I think we all have to get together and think how this financial sector is to be lifted. We can blame each other. I can say I am not responsible. But the fact is that we can’t have the banks collapsing. So we have to go back to banking. That’s why; I want the Banking Oversight Committee”.

Responding to a query made by parliamentarians as to who drove the country to such a bankruptcy and what is the punishment for them , President Ranil Wickremesinghe said that a Parliamentary Select Committee will be established on a resolution by the Parliament to look into it.

Mass Media Minister Dr. Bandula Gunawardena says that the Government is not ready to suppress any media. The Minister of Mass Media said this yesterday (28) while joining the Debate on the Expenditure Head of the Ministry of Mass Media.

The Minister of Mass Media said that the Government is also working to raise the autonomy and professional status of journalists by introducing a programme of creating a vibrant media culture.

The Media Minister emphasized that the media has to play the key role in re-establishing   the country’s image which had been badly tarnished in the international arena due to the violence which erupted across Sri Lanka after months of protests.

The violence erupted after the “Aragalaya” (Struggle) had badly affected the country’s image.

The activities that took place during the last struggle, such as the blocking of roads, absence of Parliamentary proceedings and asking for ID cards even from foreigners who came to visit this country were on the front pages of the foreign media through various media including social media. Minister Dr. Gunawardena said that the country’s image has been greatly damaged due to this reason. It is not appropriate for this country to be repeatedly advertised in the world as a country with brutal people.

Accordingly, social media or any media should act in a manner that does not tarnish the country’s image

He further said that he will ensure that the work in his Ministry is carried out in a transparent manner without any fraud or corruption.

The Budget for 2023 is aimed at creating a modern economy targeting the country’s youth and looking to go beyond the deeply entrenched mentality of a welfare economy, President Ranil Wickremesinghe said delivering the Budget 2023 in Parliament yesterday afternoon.

Reminiscing the nineteen fifties, Lee Kuan Yew once mentioned the following. In Singapore I followed the hard,but right path. Sri Lanka’s Bandaranaike followed the popular path.

There is no future for the youth in country by continuing on this popular path. There is no prosperity for the country by giving concessions while being in debt to others. So, let’s

get out of this welfare mentality now. Let’s change our thinking patterns, the President said.

“Accordingly, I request all of you and youth to actively and proactively contribute to the effort of re-raising the country through a new economic foundation”, he noted.

A glimmer of hope on emerging from the economic abyss is currently visible as a result of the strenuous and difficult actions we have adopted during the past few months,President Wickremesinghe said.

“After the era of waiting in queues for days and protesting in various occupied places, our sufferings have been eased to some extent and we have reached an era where our peace of mind is much settled,”he said. During a special Cabinet Meeting held yesterday morning at the Presidential Secretariat under the auspices of President Ranil Wickremesinghe, the Cabinet of Ministers

granted approval for the 2023 Budget. President Wickremesinghe arrived in Parliament at around 1.20 pm yesterday to deliver the Budget 2023 speech “Towards a New Beginning Approach”. He commenced delivering the Second Reading of the 2023 Appropriation Bill at around 1.32pm.

In a notable departure from traditional budgets that focus on price and wage revisions, Budget 2023 is focused on a modern economy that isn’t limited to International Monetary Fund (IMF) recommendations, Wickremesinghe said presenting the budget to parliament on Monday November 14.

President Wickremesinghe in his capacity as the Finance,Economic Stabilization and National Policies Minister said the country is in debt because of the past budgets’ pre-occupation with welfare measures.

“The budget is not limited to the International Monetary Fund (IMF) recommendations. We will move to create a modern economy,” the President told Parliament.

He said the Budget will aim at increasing government revenue to 15 percent of the gross domestic product (GDP) by 2025 from 8.3 percent at the end of 2021.

The President further said that the negotiations with the IMF are currently in progress. “We are in dialogue with India and China on debt restructuring. We are confident that these discussions will lead to positive outcomes.”he said.

He further said that the inflation could be controlled to some extent due to the actions taken in the recent past. Similarly, the rupee is strengthening and the government expects to sustain these developments.

President Wickremesinghe said that he is confident that by moving along the same path, we will be able to stabilise the economy within the next year.

“But we cannot be satisfied with that. We must start a new journey” he added. Today, our country has several main revenue generating sectors. One is the plantation economy. Next is Free Trade Zones. Garment industry, Tourism and foreign employment. Looking at those, after Independence, we have been able to create only a few avenues for the country to earn foreign income. Beyond that, why have we

not yet been able to create large-scale foreign income generating sectors? This is something we should think about carefully, said the President.

“Is the long-term development of a country based on popular decisions? Or the right decisions?,”he questioned.

In many cases, popular decisions were taken instead of correct decisions in our country. Even today many people try to make popular decisions.

What was the result of this popular ruling tradition? To build a relief economy and a relief mentality across the country. People are used to getting concessions.

Governments do not work to create opportunities forpeople to develop. Only to provide relief.

Delivering the Budget Speech, the President invited all Sri Lankans to think anew and create innovative approaches to move the country forward. Concluding the Budget Speech, President Wickremesinghe said; “I request all of you to join and support the journey of bringing positive

change in the country through these budget proposals.We are taking these suggestions as background, let’s prepare a new economic base. Let’s come to a common consensus and create a national economic policy framework. Let’s implement that policy framework for the next 25 years.

Every five years we can review our progress. Through such a review, we get the opportunity to further develop the policies that can make our journey towards our goal successful. “I have now provided this parliament with the necessary background to contribute to this journey. On one side, parliamentary sectoral committees. On the other hand, the National Assembly represents the Parliament. In addition, we have proposed several committees on public finance

and financial services. As I recently drew the attention of the Speaker,”. The Parliament has not fully formed these committees yet.

The sectoral committees can play a big role when the budget proposals that I have presented are implemented through government officials. The finance committees can effectively intervene in the exercise of reducing public expenditure.

“Therefore, I request this parliament to implement all those committees as soon as possible. Then we can create the space to initiate a new journey with a new guise.

Let’s make the best use of that space and join together to create a better future for our true national resource, our youth,” he said.

New Zealand's High Commissioner to Sri Lanka, Michael Appleton met Transport, Highways and Mass Media Minister Dr.Bandula Gunawardena at the ministry office in Battaramulla.The Minister and the New Zealand High Commissioner discussed many bilaterally important issues including strengthening diplomatic relations between Sri Lanka and New Zealand. The minister emphasized on the need for introducing energy efficient transport methods for development in the highways and transport sector. igh Commissioner Appleton assured that the New Zealand government will provide continuous support to Sri Lanka.

President Ranil Wickremesinghe urged the Secretary-General of the UN and Egypt, as the head of the COP27, to summon a meeting of all Ministers of Agriculture of all the countries to assess the food requirements of 2023 and 2024 and submit a report on the food situation. The President also emphasized the need on working closely with the multilaterals, sources of funding and the need to formulate a sustainable debt relief plan immediately to ensure the global food security.

The President further stated that it is essential to finalize this plan by February 2023 and should be implemented by the end of the 1st quarter of 2023, if not the damage caused to the political and social structures of countries will be irreparable. He also highlighted the urgent need of compiling a medium-term plan to ensure global food security At COP28.

President Ranil Wickremesinghe made these remarks while participating at the Round Table discussion on “Food Security” at the ongoing COP-27 Conference on Climate Change, in Sharm El Sheikh, Egypt.

President Ranil Wickremesinghe met the United Nations Secretary-General, António Guterres, upon his arrival in Egypt, Cairo.

The President briefed the Secretary-General on the Government’s plans on the National Environmental Policy.

The Secretary General recalled memories of his first visit to Sri Lanka in 1978.

The President left the island this morning (06) for Egypt to attend the UN Climate Change Conference COP 27. He was accompanied by Minister of Environment, Mr. Naseer Ahamed, Senior Advisor to the President on Climate Change Mr. Ruwan Wijewardene, President’s International Affairs Director Dinouk Colombage and President’s Private Secretary Sandra Perera.