EVERYTHING YOU NEED TO KNOW TODAY

COLOMBO (News 1st):-

Your Friday Morning Brief

1. Police media spokesperson SP Ruwan Gunasekara states that as of now, 293 individuals connected to the 04/21 bombings have been arrested. One hundred and fifteen of them have been remanded. Investigations are ongoing on the rest of the suspects. Further 100 bank accounts with a sum of Rs. 134 million have been frozen and seized by the CID. 2. The General Secretary of the SLFP. Dayasiri Jayasekara has informed the Elections Commission that the SLFP will be fielding a separate candidate for the upcoming Presidential election. 3. During COPE proceedings, the former Chairman of the Peoples Bank revealed that the bank incurred an irrevocable debt of Rs. 37.7 billion as a result of a contract awarded to a company named Silver Lake who were tasked with digitally transforming the bank. 4. Clarifying reasons behind the delay of the construction of the Central Expressway which was due to end in November this year; but currently re-scheduled for completion in March 2020, the Chairman of the RDA states that the delay was caused due to a number of issues including the April attacks and the problems in obtaining funds from the Japanese Mitsubishi bank. 5. "My hope is to get the opportunity to build the country with the blessings from Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe, Karu Jayasuriya and everyone else in the UNP" - Deputy Leader of the UNP Sajith Premadasa said addressing the huge masses gathered at the Kurunegala rally last evening (September 5). 6. "The country today, as far as the economy is concerned, is on the brink of disaster. As far as foreign policy is concerned, we don't know where we are...." - The leader of the Tamil National Alliance R. Sampanthan expressed his discontent over the country's economic status. 7. Two police officers have been injured in a shooting that took place early this morning (September 6) in Pandugama, Akuressa when they were pursuing a motorbike that had disregarded orders to stop. 8. Secretary to the Prime Minister, Saman Ekanayake has been summoned before the Presidential Commission inquiring into allegations on financial irregularities in state institutions within the past four years to inquire matters on an alleged irregularity during the acquisition of a building given over to the Ministry of Agriculture on a rental basis. 9. Speaker Karu Jayasuriya postponed the debate taken up on the Sri Lanka Export Development act during parliamentary proceedings yesterday (September 5), following much dispute over the proposal of the Leader of the House to postpone the vote on the act to another day. 10. Despite the failure of Sri Lanka cricket officials to provide details of alleged foreign bank accounts owned by SLC at the forensic audit, the Secretary of SLC Mohan de Silva, admitted that the board had maintained four foreign-based accounts at the COPE proceedings held yesterday (September 5).

"Don't let yesterday take up too much of today!"