“මා ඉතින් යන්න යනවා. මට යන්න අවසරයි.” නන්දන විමලාට බූට් එක දෙයි. පව් නේද?

ජාතික නිදහස් පෙරමුණේ ලේකම් නන්දන ගුණතිලක සහ ජාතික සංවිධායක කමල් දේශප්‍රිය ඔවුන් එම පක්ෂයේ දැරූ සියලු තනතුරුවලින් ඉල්ලා අස්වී ඇති බව වාර්තාවේ. ඔවුන් දෙදෙනා මේ සම්බන්ධයෙන් මැතිවරණ කොමසාරිස්වරයාට ලිඛිතව දැනුම්දී ඇත. ඔවුන්ගේ ඉල්ලා අස්වීමට තුඩුදුන් හේතු සහිත විස්තරාත්මක ලිපියක් ඔවුන්ගේ ඉල්ලා අස්වීමේ ලිපිය සමග මැතිවරණ කොමසාරිස්වරයාට යවා තිබේ විමල් වීරවංශ පක්ෂය තුළ අනුගමනය කරන ක්‍රියාමාර්ග වලට විරෝධය පෑමක් වශයෙන් තමන් ඉල්ලා අස්වූ බව නන්දන ගුණතිලක සිය මාධ්‍ය හිතවතුන්ට පවසා තිබේ.

www.lankatruth.com

Sarath Ranawaka, Kalutara district UNP leader no more

It is with great sorrow that I report the demise of Mr. Sarath Ranawaka, MP and the UNP leader for the Kalutara district. He passed away at the age of 63 at a private hospital in Colombo, after a brief illness.

MP Ranawaka has entered active politics in 1977 by representing the Lanka Samasamaja Party. He joined the main opposition United National Party in 1984.

The late MP has represented the Sri Lankan parliament for the last twenty years after he was elected in 1989 for the first time.

Mr. Sarath Ranawaka has been a guide to me teaching my first steps in politics. I always remember that with respect.

මිරිදිය ඉස්සෙක්ද, පොකිරිස්සෙක්ද මේ?

මේ හඳුනානොගත් අපූරු අමුත්තා මගේ කැමරාවට හසු වන්නේ මොරගල තානායමට යාබද ස්වාභාවික දිය තටාකයට නුදුරින් ගලායන තවමත් මිනිස් අපද්‍රව්‍ය වලින් ඉඳුල් නොවී ඇතැයි සිතිය හැකි කුඩා දිය පහරකදීය. බනිස් කැබලි කෑමට පොරකන කුඩා දියමසුන් අතරින් ඔහු මතුවන්නේය. එහත් ඔහුගේ ඉලක්කය බනිස් කැබලි නොව මසුන් විය හැකිය.

පහත ඇත්තේ විකිපීඩියාව මිරිදිය පොකිරිස්සන් ගැන කියන දේය. ඉංගිරිසියෙන් මිරිදිය පොකිරිස්සන් හඳුන්වන්නේ Crayfish ලෙසිනි. එහෙත් අපේ අමුත්තා එහි පැණෙන සියළු ඡායාරූපයන්ට වඩා වෙනස් වෙයි. මේ සත්‍ය වශයෙන්ම පොකිරිස්සෙක්ද යන සංශය තවමත් මසිත ඇත්තේ එනිසාය. දිවි විදු තතුදත්තෝ වැරදිනම් නිවැරදි කරත්වා!

Crayfish, crawfish, or crawdads — members of the superfamilies Astacoidea and Parastacoidea — are freshwater crustaceans resembling small lobsters, to which they are related. They breathe through feather-like gills and are found in bodies of water that do not freeze to the bottom; they are also mostly found in brooks and streams where there is fresh water running, and which have shelter against predators. Most crayfish cannot tolerate polluted water, although some species such as the invasive Procambarus clarkii are more hardy. Crayfish feed on living and dead animals and plants.

In Australia, New Zealand and South Africa, the term crayfish or cray generally refers to a saltwater spiny lobster, of the type Jasus that is indigenous to much of southern Oceania, while the freshwater species are usually considered a yabby, or a koura, from the Indigenous Australian, and Māori, names for the animal respectively.

වැඩි විස්තර සඳහා බලන්න: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crayfish

The Beauty of Kalutara District

Believe it or not, the Kalutara District that I represent is one of the most beautiful ones in the entire island. Not many believe this because it is so close to Colombo. To see the real beauty you have to travel deep inside to places like Matugama and Agalawatte. Let me post some of the photos I have taken during my recent visits.

Ajith P. Perera is back: Thank you all who made the FIRST BLOGGER POLITICIAN top in Kalutara District

I make this blog post after a long interval. I guess my readers understand why. An election campaign is no joke. It absorbs all the time and effort one can afford. For a first timer it is even more arduous. For two months, the number of hours I slept dropped to four.

It was fun though. Especially when you top the district in preferential votes. It was a true victory for a first timer. Enough had been said already, so I need not repeat. I just express my profound thanks to everyone who helped me in achieving that. That includes the hate bloggers, for reason they better understand, created false accusations thinking that would stop me. Jealousy knows no bounds – so I am not surprised.

Yes, UNP did not win any three of the districts. Again I do not intend elaborating. Adequate to say that a political party is a group. When you are a mere cog in a machine little you can do to change a system. I hope now the people of Kalutara district have decided that I should no more be a mere cog. That is why they gave me this power. No predictions now, but I can assure you I am not going to sit there and wait. CHANGE is what you believe in and CHANGE is what you get. In UNP and in country. Trust me.

I have also proved that I blog not for votes, but to voice my opinion. I have always been against the war, against the corruption and the tyranny of the present government. It is not because I am a UNPer, it was because what Kurakkan does is against any civilized norms. I am happy to see the outcome. The voice we made forced Kurakkan uncle avoiding genocide. If not for that and the right international intervention, at least 100,000 innocent Tamil civilians would have been six feet under the ground by now. In a way, we did a favour for Kurakkan uncle. In not, by now his name would have gone to the annals of history along with Pol Pot. I am determined to continue that debate.

I also thank all my well wishers, most of them I know only through online. I am sorry if I missed responding to individual e-mails.

A long journey has just begun. I invite you to join that difficult journey.

Appeal for funds – Ajith P.Perera, Chief Organiser UNP, Bandaragama, Candidate No. 1 – Kalutara District

This is an open request for all those who believe in a united and prosperous Sri Lankan nation. Be you a Sinhalese, Tamil, Muslim or any other I am sure you know United National Party (UNP) is the only party that can make that dream happen without prejudice to any community or individual.

I, S. Ajith Padmakantha Perera, stand for the Western Provincial Council Elections 2009. I also plan to stand for the forthcoming General Elections, representing Kalutara District. Now I am the organiser of the Bandaragama electorate, the most populous in Kalutara District.

Professionally I am a lawyer. More information on me can be obtained from the blog I run for the last one year at www.bandaragama.wordpress.com. This was the only site that communicated the news in the aftermath of Sirasa TV vandalism and the murder of Lasantha Wickramatunge in the backdrop of all mass media being indirectly silenced by the government. You may also remember my activism through the Face Book groups ‘Our tribute to Lasantha Wickramatunga’ and ‘Sirasa, whatever happens we are always with you’.

Knowing that you would always give a hand to a professional I humbly request your assistance for my campaign.

I will be grateful if you can make your contributions to the following account:

Account Holder’s name: S. A. P. Perera
Bank: Peoples’ Bank, Panadura Branch
Account Number: 148200141399190

There is no limit. Even a contribution of USD 10 matters. My intention is to have a large number contributing in small chunks rather than expect higher amount.

If you need to contact, please free to call me on my mobile number 0777-668993 (if calling from Sri Lanka) or 94-777-668993 (if from outside).

The extract from a blog post I have done sometime before will give you an overview of my political stance.

Thanking you in advance, I remain.

Yours Truly,

Ajith Padmakantha Perera,
Chief Organiser of UNP, Bandaragama
Candidate in the Western Provincial Council Elections,
No. 1, Kalutara District

Change UNP; Change the nation

A large section seems to think that UNP should blindly support Kurakkan uncle’s war agenda to earn its popularity. I vehemently disagree.

Firstly, why UNP, the only political party with a clear stance on the ethnic issue follow others’ formulae? UNP fervently opposes terrorism of any kind, but simultaneously believes the long term solution to ethnic issue can only be political. ‘Military solution’ is an oxymoron. War victories by the current regime will only be meaningful if supplemented with corrective measures to age old Tamil grievances. Otherwise, terrorism will soon raise its ugly head behind another acronym. Elimination of JVP in 1971 in a genocidal manner did not prevent Sinhala youth taking arms two decades later. Why should that change for Tamil youth? As long as breeding grounds exist, procreate the mosquitoes.

Secondly, the extended intentions of war agenda are dangerous and damaging to the nation in the long run. The war is not just to eliminate LTTE (if so, UNP finds no problem backing it) but also a long list that includes human rights of the Tamils in North and East; Tamil political parties first and the entire opposition later; any dissent voices including those of journalists and eventually the very foundation of democracy. All what Kurakkan uncle wants it to create Sri Wickrama Rajasinghe type dictatorship and continue the legacy of feudal rulers.

Sorry, No. Whatever the name, UNP has no intention of blindly supporting such a feudal dictatorship. We stand for democracy and not feudalism.

The policies of United National Party are crystal clear. They remain largely unchanged from the D. S. Senanayake days and will not change in the foreseeable future. Let me repeat in a nutshell and as I understand.

1. Unity and Equality: United National Party, as its name rightly suggests, is the party of united nationalistic political forces. UNP believes in equality. We do not think one’s ethnicity, race, gender, religion or any other attribute should stand in the way him/her enjoying citizens’ rights and privileges. We believe the country belongs to all Sri Lankans, and not to one ethnic or religious group.

2. Devolution of Power: UNP believes in an undivided (Eksath) Lanka; but not necessarily a system that concentrates power in Colombo. We have seen the flaws of such Colombo-centric governance and introduced Provincial Councils as a solution, which SLFP and JVP initially rejected, but now faithfully follow. We believe in devolving power, not only to Tamils in North but to Sinhalese in Hambanthota as well, instead of accumulating it in the hands of dictators. We believe empowering people not only at regional level but every stratum.

3. Economy: We believe in free markets; liberalization and globalization. We do not espouse unrealistic socialist dreams. We trust the private sector for its abilities. We do not equate suppressing the private sector to nation building. Economy has always thrived under previous UNP governments and there is no doubt it will continue to do so under a future UNP government.

4. Poverty Alleviation: Nobody understands the necessity of poverty alleviation than the UNP. We do not think poverty can be eliminated by redistributing public wealth. UNP had once spearheaded the most effective poverty alleviation program in Sri Lanka, under President Premadasa. What we look for is that. Beat poverty by creating more and more employment opportunities. Let poor stand on their own feet.

5. Employment Generation: UNP strongly believes more and more employment opportunities are the only way towards prosperity. It plans to achieve full employment by developing the private sector and not fattening the already overloaded government structure. To stimulate private sector growth UNP will also give utmost importance to infrastructure building. These may not be the highest priorities in populist agendas but we think in long term and not just the next six years.
I guess all UNP lovers should be proud that in spite of the immense pressure that we still stick to our original principles. We have no intention of changing these policies to enter the populist game.

The relatively poor performance at the recent Provincial Council elections was nothing but a symptom of poor organization. While working in the Eastern and Sabaragamuwa Provinces I have witnessed this firsthand. I visited many areas untouched till then. Given time limitations, even I could not visit so many areas. We surely need more man power. Strong and committed organisaers at ground level was the need of the hour of UNP at the Provincial Council elections. We could have obviously done much better with a stronger organization.

Fortunately we see the remedial measures are already on the way and an improvement of the situation. Western Provincial Council will be the Waterloo for SLFP. UNP is geared to easily win all three districts. We have a solid unbeatable organization in most areas. The challenge is only to repeat that victory at the next Provincial council elections, to be followed by the General Election.

What UNP seriously need are true leaders who can make that victory happen. Fortunately we see many dynamic leaders emerging from the Western Province. This phenomenon needs to be replicated in the other parts of the country. That needs Change; stating from the Change in the way we act.

Barack Obama could make that Change within a period of one year. What made the ‘One woman race’ to end with a first American-African in White House was his sheer determination and organization. I see the same happening in the UNP now.

We are ready to Change the nation. Before that we need to Change UNP.

Let us start with the Western Province.

A First in Sri Lanka? : A Blogger contests for the public office

That’s me, and don’t forget my number on April 25.

Accident in Wadduwa, 4 dead

Three busses including one intercity bus had gotten into a collision at Wadduwa this morning. Four passengers were confirmed dead and at least 23 have sustained injuries.

http://www.dailymirror.lk

Is this little girl a victim of medical negligence?

A young girl admitted to Nagoda Hospital in Kalutara for surgery on her left ear has been operated on her right ear instead.

Lodging a complaint with Kalutara South Police on Nov. 28th, the child’s mother, Thabrew Wijewardena has said that her daughter has become deaf in both ears now due to the negligence of doctors.

The child, Hirudini Peiris aged 3-years and one months, had been admitted to the hospital on Nov. 27th after being diagnosed with an ailment in her left ear.

She had undergone surgery on the following day.

Director of Nagoda Hospital, Dr. Nanda Waduge said that when the specialist who conducted the surgery was consulted, he had said that both ears had been infected and the surgery was done on the right ear first.

Dr. Waduge rejected the mother’s accusation that doctors were to blame for this.

However, he said that an inquiry would commence immediately.

http://www.lankadissent.com

Two Bandaragama residents among yesterdays Dehiwala bomb blast victims

To me what differentiated yesterdays Dehiwala bomb blast from the ones happened in previous weeks was the sad news that two of the victims were from my own electorate, Bandaragama.

Mr. Menaka Vanniarachchi died yesterday while 25 year old Ms. Mekhala Niranjala of Ramukkana, Bandaragama succumbed to her injuries today (27) morning at the Intensive Care Unit of the Colombo South teaching hospital. According to what we hear, they were a couple and about to get married next month. As we all know, the merciless bombs do not take such details into account. That is the ugly face of the terrorism.

I also had to perform the extremely difficult task of informing the families of these two victims, after Dr. Ravindra Fernando passed me the sad news from the hospital. The girl was not dead then but her condition was critical and the doctors have already given up hopes. The family of her is personally known to me for a long time.

The other victims from Kalutara district were Ms. Rani Munasinghe of Kalutara North, Mr. Chitral of Panadura, Mr. Roshan Perera of Kalutara South and Ms. Kusum Ranjani Silva of Wadduwa.

I pass my heartiest condolences to the family members of all victims and wish speed recovery for the injured.

It is sad that innocent people continue to die as a result of a tug of war between two power hungry individuals who have no other concern than their own survival.

I am certain the politicians of war mongering political parties like SLFP, JHU and JVP would have badly felt guilty hearing about these unnecessary deaths. No matter how sad we feel, our only consolation is that United National Party does not support this ruthless war, which had claimed so many lives (not to mention the rising Cost of Living as a result of high war expenditure) ever since the Presidential Election of 2005.

What we suffer today is the outcome of the greed for power and money of one political family that has no concern for the country. Unfortunately this family will continue to ruin the country till someone stops it for the sake of the nation.