Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe has revealed the truth behind the speculations of a top politician in the new government being involved in the sacking of Bandula Padmakumara from the popular program Mul Pituwa.
Bandula
Revealing the truth behind the removal of the former Lakehouse Chairman from the program, the PM had said the decision has not been influenced by any political pressure whatsoever from the new government and that it is the Swarnavahini Chairman’s independent choice.
When questioned about the removal, the PM had told the popular literary figure Upul Shantha Sannasgala that he did not give any instructions for Bandula P to be sacked from Swarnavahini.
“Chairman of Swarnavahini, Jeewaka Edirisinghe had phoned the PM and had said that Bandula P is running Mul Pituwa against the new government and its policies and had asked whether or not he should be sacked,” Sannasgala said.
In response, the PM had informed Jeewaka that Bandula’s continuation in Swarnavahini is of no concern to him and that as the Chairman of the media institution it is up to him to do whatever he wishes.
However, upon requesting Bandula P to step down from hosting the Mul Pituwa program, the Swarnavahini administration spread a rumour that the decision was made due to increasing political pressure from the newly formed government.
Richmond Peiris / January 23, 2015
Now that it’s done, Yahapalanaya seems to have shown its true colors! PM Ranil Wickremasinghe is in damage control mode but it is too late; Mr. Wimal Weerawansa has already capitalized the ill-advised decision made by the idiotic chairman of Swarnawahini. Mr. Weerawansa’s speech in Parliament is stronger and effective than a cluster bomb. Already Yahapalanaya has given enough ammunition to many in the country within 10 days and the 100 day program seems to be now in back burner(ready to be cooked but not as a priority)!!! Patriotic people who spoke about defeating Mahinda Rajapakse to save SL from nepotism and corruption are now speechless when they see President Sirisena appoint his own brothers to high posts. In addition, statements made in India by Foreign Minister Samaraweera about demilitarization of the North, implementation of the 13 amendment etc. is highly inflammable. When people read Dr. DJ’s article on Colombo Telegraph about it, what will the patriotic people think about this government which has not even been properly elected but appointed by new president Sirisena who is still considered a weak individual by many???
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Samuel Jayaweera / January 23, 2015
This proves there is no unity in the newly elected coalition – so they have to work on UNITY too while working on their pledges put before people. Yesterday s incident of UNP MP costed them AND people all their nerves – however MP to be taken to the custody THOUGH was little delayed – later calmed down the anxities of the people. Now they are all aware, the rule of law is equal to everyone. Anyway, those who voted for the new coaltion did not intend any kind of political revenges but taking legal action agains all those who have abused the state funds in various means. People of this country have been waiting culprits to be convicted before long.
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Humbug / January 23, 2015
That’s strange, Bandula only read what was in the Mul Pituwa of the newspapers and nothing beyond. BUT Rangana of Paththare Visthare goes beyond, and adds a few words of his own and a few punches here and there (earlier and now). Even as Lake House Boss did Bandula have any say? Daily News, Sunday Observer and the rest of the Sinhala newspapers not forgetting ITN and Rupavahini worked under the orders of the previous higher ups of that regime. PM Ranil has said the truth Swarnavahini is now trying damage control with the Yahapalanaya government.
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Navin / January 23, 2015
You Richmond Peiris, THE patriot, where were you when the country was being raped by Maraapassa non-stop?
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reviewcric / January 24, 2015
Weerawansa is an idiot. The pm was very correct in saying that it was weerawansas conduct that led to MRs defeat. You are a funny fellow indeed
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Rohan / January 23, 2015
Wait, wait, where does Ranil ‘blame’ Swarnavahini Administration for sacking Bandula? He said he had nothing to do with it, even he said he was not concerned about the way the program was produced.
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Huz / January 23, 2015
I found a small error in your post, I just wanted to point it out.
I think you meant to say “Mr. Weerawansa’s speech in Parliament is hardly stronger and effective than a fart.”
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Jeremy Ludikins / January 23, 2015
Whether it is a fart or a bomb the damage is done.
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douglas / January 23, 2015
Who ever who did it, IT WAS GOOD FOR THE COUNTRY. This person is one among the many in the “State” media who brought the downfall of the Ex President. This person, supposed to be a “JOURNALIST” and a “MEDIA GURU” to tell the least “Prostituted” that esteem profession and was a disgrace to the whole community of Journalists. (Period)
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Cassandra / January 23, 2015
Swarnavahini, not diffrent to Lucien Ferdinando and Dayan Silva, is just trying to scurry flavel (sic) with the new Govrnment. Why get hot under the collar over this.
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Pot Shot / January 23, 2015
Jeewaka Edirisinghe and Soma Edirisinghe cannot run a business professionally or ethically without playing politics. Bandula’s mentality=Jeewaka=Soma. That is the type these people are. I am happy the PM cleared this and put the facts straight. As an average man I would like to see not only Bandula who sucked -up to MR( by getting his daughter to write a book on MR) getting a kick but corrupt business people like Jeewaka and Soma should also get kicked harder.
I am fairly certain that the call the PM received from Jeewaka Edirisinghe might have been after 10 years or more.Because even calling any member of the UNP at that time would have been seen as disloyal to MR. These people know which side their bread is buttered.
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Harry Hatton / January 23, 2015
It was highly unethical for Padmakumar to be the Chairman of the large government owned Lake House media group while at the same time working as an employee of a private TV station as a news reader.
Not only was Padmakumar pocketing two big salaries but was in conflicting positions.His daughter who is a young graduate was picked up by Mahinda Rajapakse to write his biography ! Can you imaging how shallow MR must be when on one hand he is called a national liberator and the other his life story is written by a girl just out of her teens ! It is like a school drama. For her intellectually challenging job of writing the biography of the big boss she was given an office and vehicles at temple trees and then at the BMICH ! After her huge intellectual effort this young girl was given a diplomatic appointment in the UK as a reward !
With all this back ground Padmakumars program on TV had no credibility. We like to think that our news presenters are politically and personally unbiased. It was obvious this man was a mercenary exploiting the situation for his personal gain.
The Mulpituwa ratings went down badly. But the Swarnavahini owners were too scared to remove this aging man padmakumar because of his intimacy with the Rajapakse brothers. The entire private sector was terrified of the Rajapakse family. Padmakumar used to mention the Rajapakse name in every conversation, even when talking to his driver !So Padmakuamr was able to intimidate the Edirisinghe family which owned the TV station.
Meanwhile at the Lake house annual losses kept doubling while corruption multiplied.Padmakumar who had been a sinhala editor of a tabloid and then a news reader at swarnavahini was completly at sea when it came to corporate management. In relative terms Lake House losses are even larger than Mihin Air.This after all owned one time popular print media giants. Now Vijaya group has over taken it.
So why should any one worry about another fallen old hypocrite ?
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mahanama / January 23, 2015
A fraudulent scheme perpetrated by Swaranavahini backfired when they played Ranil against Padmakumara.Be careful of these media moguls.
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Mohan / January 24, 2015
BP at the very inception of Mul Pituwa was very unbiased. Subsequently along with his huge financial upsurge he was only supporting MR and not as an unbiased news caster.
It was good to sack him as he was becoming very arrogant and too big for his boots.
A regular dhobi
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Madhavi / January 24, 2015
Frankly, to me it looks as though it’s an another retired aged old government servant, who is refusing to accept the fact that the said program he was hosting might have been obtaining poor ratings, as such, the senior management has had no option but to either change the anchor or stop the program altogether.
His moment of glory being taken away from him, firstly, as the chairman of LakeHouse, was bad enough. This I believe was due to the fact that the personnel working in the establishment was actually in the verge of going on strike due to the fact that he was promoting his favourits over and above those who were far more senior in line.
He managed to last as long as he did, as Harry Hatton clearly stated, was mainly due to the fact that he was extremely partial to the past president, who saved him on many an occasion during his tenure as Chairman.
His daughter was appointed to write out the autobiography of the, then president, a childish effort when reading the book, when Sri Lanka has many, imminent writers, who’s command of the language and political history of the past president far surpasses her knowledge, just a basic school girl, clearly out of her depths. The reward being that she was appointed to the High Commission of Sri Lanka, an extremely important institution in the world of foreign representation, seeing the adverse publicity our country was getting due to the war amongst many others.
Seeing that Sri Lanka has many a TV channel, State as well as private, one would think its an extremely competitive field. One would naturally come to the conclusion that they would keep changing their programs to attract the audience so as to keep their ratings going.
Seeing that there is freedom of the media under the present regime, can’t they change their personel without people jumping to conclusions that it’s based on politics? By stating freedom of speech and media, I clearly heard a deputy minister expressing his disappointment on the ministry he’d been allocated, when questioned on his view, I believe it was a take show on Derana, he clearly stated, yes, he was at the time, that under the present regime, not only could he say so, but that he wasn’t going to get penalized either. But that does not stop him from going to the relevant ministry and taking over his duties to safe guard the rights of the people.
What Mr. Padmakumara did was wrong, as a chairman of a state institution, it was a conflict of interest to go present a program in a private media channel. It’s unethical he should do so, by slandering the owners of the saiid channel and of the others, one would think that at last, Sri Lanka has been given the freedom of Speech.
Instead of critisising, just thank all who saved our country from being another North Korea or such countries.
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K. C. John / January 24, 2015
Your headline is completely misleading. The PM has certainly not “blamed” Swarnavahini. The management of Swarnavahini has fired its own anchor and then spread a rumour!
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Mahen / January 24, 2015
I cannot understand why there is so much fuss regarding the sacking of a third grade journalist and presenter who was already too big for his boots. In any other country he would not even get a look in, on the free tabloid distributed in the metro stations.
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Ashok Fernando / January 25, 2015
Who is Bandula Padmakumara? And why is everybody worried about him? He was the most annoying news reader this country has ever seen, his rather feminine way of reading the news paper headlines would have appealed to some, but not many.
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Nissanka Senadeera / January 25, 2015
Bandula was simply another lackey of the MR regime as another comment above states, his daughter wrote a book about MR and then she was posted overseas to a foreign mission, btw that was such boring drivel, just like the fathers boring voice. His modus operandi was to got the government papers to write the headlines he wants including the Rivera which is owned by MR, then he says he simply read what the paper said. Such a [Edited out] voice it was a wonder he was kept on for so long, good riddance to bad rubbish, I say.
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Pradeep De Silva / January 25, 2015
Swarnavahini simply made a business decision, according to sources his salary alone was astronomical and the program was not popular as it may have been 10 years ago with only a few commercials running on it. Good decision for sure.
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