Connect with us

News

Ballot paper printing not yet started?

Published

on

Although the distribution of postal ballots should commence on February 15, the Government Printing Department sources said that not a single ballot paper has been printed so far.

Meanwhile, an official of the Election Commission has informed a senior official of the Government Press that he will complain to the court if the ballot papers are not printed.

It is reported that there was an argument in this regard during a discussion held last Friday between Elections Commissioner General Saman Sri Ratnayake and the Government Printer.

The Election Commission has not made any payment for the printing work done so far to the Government Press.

It said the printing of ballot papers should be commenced since the Supreme Court has given an order to go ahead with the election.

Lies of the Election Commission

Meanwhile, the Election Commission has informed the divisional secretaries and politicians that the printing of ballot papers has commenced.

Stocks of paper have been allocated for printing of ballot papers, computer designs (artwork) have been completed but no ballot papers have been printed so far.

It has been the tradition for the election commission to settle the payments required for printing of ballot papers once the election has been held.

However, it is reported that only part of the money given by the Treasury and the candidate’s bail money has been sent to the government press.

“Rs.40mn given to print ballot papers which is enough only for 10 districts”

A trade union member of the government printing department has told the media that an inquiry has been made from the Attorney General asking if ballot papers should be printed on Friday.

“The press has still not received an answer. The printing will commence tomorrow once the Attorney General gives his opinion,” he said.

A number of government officials have been called by the Elections Commissioner General to discuss holding the election on credit terms, but none of them have attended the meeting.

It is against this backdrop that certain media have reported that the postal voting will not be held as planned on February 22, 23, 24 due to the lack of financial allocations for the poll.

Enough paper and ink for the election!

Meanwhile, it was reported that the reports published in some media that the government press does not have necessary paper and ink for the printing works related to the local government elections are false.

As ballot papers are printed using paper with security watermarks only in a presidential election and a general election, 80gsm normal white paper is used for the printing of provincial council and local government elections’ ballots papers. The government printing department has more than enough such paper and ink, it was reported.

In this situation, a printing department official emphasized that there is no need to buy paper and ink immediately for local government election activities.

Source – The Leader

BIZ

UK’s relaxed trade rules to boost SL exports

Published

on

By

The Government of the United Kingdom (UK) has unveiled a package of reforms to simplify imports from developing countries like Sri Lanka after upgrades to the Developing Countries Trading Scheme (DCTS).

The changes, announced as part of the UK’s wider Trade for Development offer, aim to support economic growth in partner countries, including Sri Lanka, while helping UK businesses and consumers access high-quality, affordable goods.

New measures include simplifying rules of origin, enabling more goods from countries such as Sri Lanka, Nigeria, and the Philippines can enter the UK tariff-free, even when using components from across Asia and Africa.

These changes are expected to be in place by early 2026.

This move strengthens Sri Lanka’s position in its second-largest apparel market, supporting exports, jobs, and economic growth.

The British High Commissioner to Sri Lanka, Andrew Patrick, said: “This is a win for the Sri Lankan garment sector, and for UK consumers. With the UK being the second largest export market and garments making up over 60% of that trade, we know manufacturers here will welcome this announcement.

“We want Sri Lanka to improve the utilisation of the UK’s Developing Countries Trading Scheme for a wider range of goods, not just garments. With the Sri Lankan government’s ambition to grow exports, and with the simplification of rules of origin for other sectors too, we strongly encourage more exporters to explore how they can benefit from the preferences offered by the DCTS. The UK remains committed to working towards creating shared prosperity for both our countries.”

Continue Reading

News

Pakistan police arrest 149 including 2 Lankans in ‘scam call centre’ raid

Published

on

By

Pakistan police have arrested 149 people in a raid on a scam call centre, the country’s National Cyber Crime Investigation Agency (NCCIA) said on Thursday.

The agency told the BBC it acted after a tip-off about the network, which was operating in the city of Faisalabad.

It said the centre was involved in Ponzi schemes and tricked people into handing over vast sums of money in the name of fake investments.

Those arrested included 78 Pakistanis, 48 Chinese nationals, eight Nigerians, four Filipinos, two Sri Lankans, six Bangladeshis, two Myanmar nationals and one Zimbabwean national.
Eighteen of the 149 were women, the agency added.

A copy of a police report said victims of the alleged scam would initially receive a small return on their first investments, before being persuaded to hand over larger sums of money.

“The charged individuals ran WhatsApp groups where they lured ordinary people by assigning small investment tasks like subscribing to different TikTok and YouTube channels,” the agency said.

“Later, they shifted them to Telegram links for further online tasks requiring larger investments.”

Pakistani citizen Muhammad Sajid told BBC Urdu that he was added to a Telegram channel with tens of thousands of members and was impressed by the company’s work. He said he gave them more than 3.138 million rupees ($36,600) in various instalments.

The raid, which took place on Tuesday, saw authorities seize hundreds of computers, servers, cryptocurrency exchanges and foreign SIM cards from the site.

On Wednesday, 149 suspects appeared in court, 87 of whom were handed over to the NCCIA on a five-day physical remand.

A further 62 suspects have been transferred to the district jail on judicial remand until 23 July.

The agency said the raid was at the residence of Malik Tehseen Awan, the former head of Faisalabad’s power grid, who has not been arrested.

(BBC News)

Continue Reading

BIZ

Milk tea price upped by Rs. 10

Published

on

By

The All Island Canteen and Restaurant Owners’ Association has announced a Rs. 10 increase in the price of a cup of milk tea.

Association President Harshana Rukshan stated that the decision was made in response to the recent rise in the price of imported milk powder.

Continue Reading

Trending

Copyright © 2024 Sri Lanka Mirror. All Rights Reserved