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Anwar Ibrahim sworn in as Malaysian PM

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Malaysia’s veteran opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim has been sworn in as the country’s new prime minister, after several days of post-election deadlock.

The new leader was appointed by King Sultan Abdullah, after elections over the weekend resulted in an unprecedented hung parliament.

Neither Mr Anwar nor ex-premier Muhyiddin Yassin had won the simple majority needed to form a government.

It is not immediately clear who Mr Anwar will go into coalition with.

“After taking into the consideration the views of Their Royal Highnesses the Malay Rulers, His Majesty has given consent to appoint Anwar Ibrahim as the 10th Prime Minister of Malaysia,” said a statement released by the palace earlier on Thursday.

The new PM was sworn in by the king in the late afternoon.

Mr Anwar’s Pakatan Harapan (PH) party, which won the biggest share of seats in Saturday’s election, does not have enough seats on its own to form a government.

It took five days of intense negotiations to reach an agreement on a new government, during which time various combinations of parties and forms of alliances were discussed, and then rejected.

Many of the political leaders have personal and ideological differences which made it hard to find a workable majority.

In the end it was left to Malaysia’s constitutional monarch, King Abdullah, to summon all the leaders to the palace to try to find sufficient common ground.

It is not clear what form the new government will take; whether a formal coalition of parties, a minority government with other parties offering a confidence and supply agreement, or a national unity government including all the main parties.

(BBC News)

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Request to cancel Chamara Sampath’s bail, rejected

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The Colombo Chief Magistrate’s Court today (May 16) rejected a request by the  Commission to Investigate Allegations of Bribery or Corruption (CIABOC) to cancel the bail granted to Badulla District MP Chamara Sampath Dassanayake and remand him again over alleged financial misconduct during his tenure as a member of the Uva Provincial Council in 2016.

Chief Magistrate Thanuja Lakmali delivered the decision after considering arguments presented by both parties.

In a motion filed before the court, the CIABOC alleged that the MP had interfered with ongoing investigations through his wife by prompting former President Ranil Wickremesinghe to hold a press conference. 

During this briefing, Wickremesinghe reportedly made inaccurate statements related to the case, portraying the MP’s actions as permissible.
However, President’s Counsel Kalinga Indatissa, representing Dassanayake, denied any interference or misconduct, arguing there was no evidence of witness tampering. The Commission also acknowledged that the former President is not listed as a witness in the case.

MP Dassanayake was initially granted bail on April 08 over the same incident.

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DMT stops issuing number plates over supply shortage

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The Department of Motor Traffic has notified owners of newly registered vehicles that the issuance of number plates has been temporarily suspended, effective April 28, due to a supply shortage.

In an official communication, the department acknowledged that although number plates are a mandatory component of vehicle registration, ongoing supply issues have made it impossible to fulfill this requirement at present.

As a result, both number plates and corresponding stickers for newly registered vehicles will not be issued until further notice.

The Department has assured vehicle owners that distribution will resume as soon as the supply is restored.

(dailynews.lk)

(Except for the headline, this story, originally published by dailynews.lk has not been edited by SLM staff)

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CIABOC refutes Ranil’s claim

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The Commission to Investigate Allegations of Bribery or Corruption (CIABOC) today (May 16) informed the Colombo Chief Magistrate’s Court that a recent statement by former President Ranil Wickremesinghe regarding a treasury circular was factually inaccurate.

The Magistrate was also informed that the statement may have interfered with an ongoing bribery investigation involving Badulla District MP Chamara Sampath Dassanayake.

Wickremesinghe, speaking at a special media briefing, had stated that a circular issued in 2015 – during his tenure as Prime Minister – allowed provincial councils to withdraw fixed deposit funds prior to maturity.

However, the CIABOC has clarified that the circular in question was actually issued on November 22, 2016, whereas Dassanayake had withdrawn the funds much earlier, on February 29, 2016.

The Commission also disclosed that Mr. Wickremesinghe’s statement was made at the request of Dassanayake’s wife and that the accuracy of the circular’s date had not been verified before the public statement.

Dassanayake, who appeared in court today, is accused of causing a financial loss of over Rs. 17.6 million to the government by prematurely withdrawing fixed deposit funds belonging to the Uva Provincial Council during his time as Chief Minister.

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