Election Promise to Expose Ranil’s Political Bribes Remains Empty Rhetoric
AKD and Trump Reveal Contrasting Lists
Trump Exposes Key Figures Benefiting from U.S. Aid
Soros Factor Looms Over Sri Lanka’s Economic Woes
Nalinda Dodges Media Questions
Ranil’s London Visit and Al Jazeera’s ‘Head to Head’ Interview
Batalanda Allegations Leave Ranil Taken Aback
Comrade Lionel Exposes 41 Past Political Killings
Ranil’s bribes
For the first time, the ‘Mawrata’ newspaper exposed the extensive privileges granted as political bribes to MPs during Ranil Wickremesinghe’s presidency from 2022 to 2024.
Our fight began when reports surfaced that Ranil had been offering bar licenses and funds to bribe SJB-Pohottuwa MPs to strengthen his position for the presidential election. We revealed that these political bribes were given indiscriminately—across both government and opposition MPs—and demanded that the full list of beneficiaries be made public.
Following our exposé, the National People’s Power, which then consisted of three opposition MPs, adopted our cause. Led by Anura Kumara Dissanayake, Vijitha Herath, and Harini Amarasuriya, the National People’s Power (NPP) took up this issue both inside and outside Parliament. They vowed that once in power, they would disclose the names of MPs who received these political bribes and revoke all bar licenses illegally issued by Ranil. At the time, we were pleased to see our fight evolve into a key campaign slogan for the JVP.
Repeated reminders
Even after Anura assumed the presidency and formed the Malimawa government with a two-thirds supermajority, we repeatedly reminded its leaders of their pledge. However, it is deeply disappointing that the President and his government have reduced this promise to mere rhetoric. While the Malimawa government did release a list of 360 entities that received bar licenses under Ranil’s administration, they deliberately omitted the names of MPs involved. They neither disclosed which MPs had received these licenses and funds nor took action to revoke the illegally granted bar permits, as they had promised.
Instead, the Malimawa government released two unrelated lists: one detailing MPs who received money from the President’s Fund after 2010 and another listing MPs who were compensated for houses damaged during the protests. While these disclosures set an important precedent, they leave us questioning why the government has failed to fulfil its original promise—exposing the MPs who received bribes from Ranil.
If the Malimawa government is truly committed to fostering a new political culture, it cannot afford to ignore the corruption that took place just two years ago while focusing on events from a decade or more ago. The people who voted for change—6.8 million strong—deserve to see justice served. Yet, to our deep regret, there is still no indication that the government intends to follow through on this critical promise.
Trump’s List
However, while the government has been hiding the lists and breaking the promises made to the country, a controversial list of names related to Sri Lanka has now been revealed, thanks to the new US President Donald Trump. It is a list that has been paid crores of rupees to prominent politicians, media institutions, journalists, social media activists and popular figures in the country under various topics in the past through the US government-run US Aid Institute.
The unofficially published list of names is currently circulating rapidly on Facebook and WhatsApp social media networks, and it is a special incident that a prominent figure who holds a powerful position in the Malima government is among them. It is stated that the political figure has been paid money to talk about a very controversial topic within the country. In addition, the list also reveals that the US Aid has pumped large amounts of money into several prominent opposition MPs since 2019.
Who is SJB beneficiary?
In addition, information has now been received by the ‘inside politics’ column about another special matter. That is, instead of presenting SJB leader Sajith Premadasa as the SJB candidate in the 2024 Presidential Election, the ‘US aid’ has spent a large amount of money since 2019 to make another prominent MP from the opposition, who is said to be educated, as the Presidential candidate. Through this, it is identified that this MP has been given a large amount of money to seize the SJB leadership, destroy the image of SJB leader Sajith, and enhance this MP’s image.
It has also been revealed that this MP had appointed an engineer as a coordination officer for that purpose. In addition, Trump later revealed in a special message on his Twitter account that large amounts of money had been pumped through the Bush administration to overthrow the governments of several countries, including Sri Lanka, India, Bangladesh, and Ukraine.
Who is Soros
Also, through this Twitter message, Trump revealed another special fact to the world. That is, a large amount of money has been given to George Soros, a well-known figure in America, through the US, claiming that it was for climate change projects. George Soros is not a stranger to Sri Lanka either. A few years ago, during the ‘Yahapalana’ government, we revealed an extraordinary revelation about this so-called George Soros to the country through ‘Inside Politics’. At that time, former Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe had taken steps to bring this so-called George Soros to Sri Lanka. In a context where no media reported on this at the time, we made a special revelation through the ‘inside politics’ column and said that Ranil was preparing to bring George Soros to Sri Lanka and stage a big political drama.
However, at that time, someone had advised the then President Maithripala Sirisena that George Soros was an extremely dangerous person and that he was a well-known political deal-maker. Accordingly, Ranil sent George Soros to the Presidential Secretariat to meet Maithri, but Maithri refused to meet Soros. Maithri had taken steps to send one of his advisors down to meet Soros from his office on the upper floor.
Maithri’s cold shoulder
Through that, Maithri gave Soros the message that he was not ready to meet him. Realizing this, Soros also left the Presidential Secretariat in great disappointment, which we reported in this column. It is noteworthy that George Soros, whom we revealed that day, was also given a large amount of money by the Foundation, claiming to discuss climate change. Accordingly, the authorities should take steps to investigate which party and which politicians Soros threw this money at.
In addition, this revelation by the Trump government has confirmed that the Foundation has spent a large amount of money to speak publicly on another controversial topic in Sri Lanka. That is, a large amount of money has been spent to use a single word instead of the use words “male” and “female”. In this case, when examining the list of names, it was seen that the Foundation has also given money to one of the most powerful female figures in the government. Furthermore, the Foundation has taken steps to provide money to media institutions and journalists for this purpose.
Wimal Weerawanse’s press
Although former Minister Wimal Weerawansa held a press conference last week to reveal some of these names to the country, it should be noted that we will not be publishing the names as the list of names circulating on social media has not been officially confirmed by the US side. We are currently trying to confirm this through our information channels.
However, the ‘inside politics’ column has heard that the new Trump administration is preparing to make many more special revelations in the future, officially or unofficially. It is not known whether it will happen today or tomorrow, but, likely, that the Trump administration will also release these lists in the same way that the current Compass government releases lists of names. However, the ‘Inside Politics’ column has also heard that many prominent figures in Sri Lanka are currently very upset due to Trump’s release of these lists of names. This is because the ‘USaid’ has provided a huge amount of money to certain prominent figures and institutions. Accordingly, it is also reported that these people are afraid that serious problems regarding certain expenses will inevitably arise in the future.
Nalinda slips away
However, during the cabinet press conference held last Tuesday, a journalist questioned Minister Nalinda Jayatissa regarding the inclusion of a powerful figure in the government in this list, mentioning her name. Nalinda, who gave a slippery answer, said that the US government itself should explain in this regard. Although Nalinda avoided the question by giving such an answer, the information we have received indicates that the Malima government is also currently seeking information on this.
On the other hand, the most serious fact here is that in almost every country where the US aid Institute spent money to overthrow the government, those countries have become unstable and the governments have fallen. For example, the leaders of Sri Lanka and Bangladesh had to flee the country. The governments of Nepal were overthrown. The Ukrainian government became unstable and became embroiled in an endless war with Russia. Even in India, farmers took to the streets and tried to overthrow the government, but only Narendra Modi successfully suppressed it.
SL politicians on the list
However, there are also politicians in Sri Lanka who have emerged from this revelation made by Trump. One of them is Wimal Weerawansa. Wimal had pointed out to the country since his time in the JVP that imperialist conspiracies were being launched to destabilize the country. Although he said so then only for the sake of talking, Wimal did not have official information to confirm it like he does today.
But as a twist of fate, it is a special event that an American president himself has given Wimal that information. Accordingly, even though some people laughed at Wimal when he spoke about imperialist conspiracies back then, no one can laugh at Wimal today. Because by now, America itself has confirmed that imperialist conspiracy accusation. Wimal, last week, summoned a media conference and challenged that if there is even one MP with backbone in the opposition, he should propose the appointment of a parliamentary select committee to investigate the MPs who have been given money by this institution and how they spent it. Accordingly, the national organizer of the Pohottuwa, Namal Rajapaksa, took steps to send a letter to the Speaker last week requesting the appointment of a parliamentary select committee to investigate the matter.
Ranil’s fake news
The ‘inside politics’ column has been continuously reporting information about the political practices of former President Ranil Wickremesinghe. One of the points we pointed out was that Ranil prefers to do politics through his family newspapers rather than doing politics with the people as a leader of the people. We have been exposing this claim with examples of how this is done, especially the use of fake news. Because of these revelations we made, Ranil’s false news is not published in the newspapers belonging to Ranil’s family today as it was then. Even if it is published occasionally, the people are now aware of it, so that false news does not work.
However, we reported last week through the ‘inside politics’ column that Ranil was preparing to visit London. Citing a news article published by the London-based Enews website, we pointed out that two civil society organizations operating in London are planning to file criminal charges against Ranil and obtain an arrest warrant from the London court. We also pointed out that this is related to the Batalanda incident.
Mehedi Hassan of Al Jaseera
Meanwhile, before the London visit, Ranil received another invitation from London. It was from the world-renowned media organization Al Jazeera. Its journalist Hassan invited Ranil to participate in the ‘Head to Head’ program he was hosting. This invitation was very appropriate for Ranil, who does politics through the media, so Ranil accepted the invitation without thinking twice.
By now, another political plan was also working in Ranil’s subconscious. That was the plan to sabotage the UNP-SJB peace talks that had taken place in the past few days. That was because if those talks were successful, there was a big chance that the entire UNP would fall behind the SJB and accept Sajith as its leader. Ranil had already launched a plan to sabotage those talks. That was by deliberately involving someone like Harin Fernando, who is hated by the SJB, in the last discussion held at Harshana Rajakaruna’s house, along with Thalatha. Accordingly, Ranil planned to sabotage the UNP-SJB talks and convince the UNP that ‘I am the fighter’ and ‘I am the leader’ by joining the Al Jazeera interview during his London visit.
Head-to-head interview
Something should also be said about the ‘head to head’ interview conducted by Hassan on Al Jazeera. The format of this discussion is quite different, so the program and its host, Mehedi Hasan, have now gained great popularity in the international media. It is also considered to be on par with the ‘Hard Talk’ interview programs on international channels such as BBC in terms of ratings.
in this discussion, any question can be asked, and the participant in the discussion must answer it. Another group of experts also join the interview, and they are also allowed to ask the guest one question each. Accordingly, arrangements were made to seat a group of experts who are well-versed in Sri Lankan issues in the panel of experts for the program in which Ranil will participate.
However, Ranil, who went to London after disrupting the UNP-SJB peace talks and attacking Sajith, had to face great embarrassment last week. Reports says that this discussion has become so heated that it is not only Ranil but also Sri Lanka as a country that is being shamed.
Shame on Ranil
An inquiry from a Sri Lankan said that he was also prepared to ask Ranil a question during the discussion and that he did not say anything due to the embarrassment caused by Ranil’s behaviour. However, it is not possible to say anything right now regarding whether this interview will be broadcasted by Al Jazeera or not, but we will present a brief translation of an article published in English by the LankaEnews website operating from London regarding the relevant incident.
A cold evening was passing in the capital of Great Britain (England) London. There was no sign of any letup in the winter that has enveloped England. The date was exactly February 05, 2025. The time must have been 7.30 in the evening. The Conway Hall in London was seen to be in a state of readiness for a special occasion. A certain special man was expected to attend the event. Several others were also in a state of readiness to hold a special discussion with that person. A group of other guests had also gathered at the Conway Hall to witness all this. Who was this special man who was coming here to attend this event? He was a man many of us know well.
Six times PM
Mr Ranil Wickremesinghe, who served as the Prime Minister of Sri Lanka six times and the President of the country, was this special man. It was reported that he had recently arrived in Great Britain for a personal visit. During this visit, former President Ranil Wickremesinghe had been invited to a media discussion conducted by the world-renowned media organization Al Jazeera. He was thus invited to a discussion called ‘Head to Head’, a famous television program of Al Jazeera, which is hosted by one of the world’s most famous journalists, Mehdi Hassan.
This journalist hosts his special program with unique and controversial figures from the world. This was the first time that Ranil Wickremesinghe participated in such an international media discussion after stepping down from the presidency. There, several questions were initially stated to be asked of the former president before the discussion. It was evident how these questions had been framed in a somewhat controversial contemporary environment. Let us examine that initial occasion.
Key topics for the debate:
1. Did President Ranil Wickremesinghe’s economic policies save Sri Lanka from collapse? Or did they pave the way for further crises?
2. What progress has Sri Lanka made under Ranil Wickremesinghe’s leadership in curbing corruption and human rights abuses?
3. Could he have done more as Prime Minister to prevent and investigate the 2019 Easter bombings?
4. Batalanda torture camp – What was Ranil Wickremesinghe’s role in the secret detention and torture practices in the late 1980s?
5. Privatization of state-owned enterprises – Were state assets sold off to his close associates at low prices under Wickremesinghe’s government?
6. Visa Processing Scandal – What is Wickremesinghe’s connection to the controversial contract awarded to an Indian company to handle visas on arrival at the Bandaranaike International Airport in Katunayake?
7. Bond Scam – What was his role in the infamous Central Bank Bond Scam, the largest financial fraud in Sri Lanka’s history?
8. Political Appointments – Why did Wickremesinghe’s administration appoint 45 non-diplomats, including family members of politicians, as ambassadors to Sri Lanka?
Hassan takes up Ranil
Mehdi Hassan, who is hosting this Al Jazeera media conference at London’s Conway Hall, is considered a very experienced and award-winning journalist. He is currently 45 years old and is of Indian and British descent. The ‘Head to Head’ television program he hosts is very controversial. He can be seen conducting the discussion with President Ranil Wickremesinghe as follows.
Mehdi Hassan – You claim to have saved Sri Lanka from economic collapse in the past. But under your watch, the country fell into an unprecedented debt burden. Public trust in the government eroded. International relations deteriorated. Where is this global recognition that you boast about?
Ranil Wickremesinghe – We completed the IMF negotiations. We have built a lot of foreign investments as well as diplomatic relations. This has proven and shown our capabilities. There is plenty of evidence for that. It’s not a lie.
While asking several questions about Ranil Wickremesinghe’s short-lived presidential rule, journalist Mehdi Hassan decided to ask a controversial question. It was the story of the Batalanda torture chamber that was much talked about in 1989. Al Jazeera television reported it as follows.
Mehdi Hassan – Mr. Wickremesinghe, let’s talk about this issue that is more important than any other. Let’s talk about Batalanda. We cannot forget this past. Did you know about the torture chambers or not?
Batalanda surfaced
As the journalist asked the question, there was a feeling that a great weight was falling on the floor of the Conway Hall. For those who know, however, Batalanda refers to the torture chamber that was allegedly operated during the Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP) insurgency in Sri Lanka in the late 1980s. Ranil Wickremesinghe, then a powerful figure in the United National Party, has long been accused of involvement in these human rights abuses. But he has consistently denied the allegations. But under Mehdi Hassan’s relentless questioning, he had no choice but to deny it. Hassan’s sharp questioning and unflinching interview style filled the Conway Hall with anticipation. He raised his voice again.
Mehdi Hassan – Did you know about the torture chambers? No? (He questioned sternly)
Ranil Wickremesinghe – It was a turbulent time. I focused on governance. We had to protect the state. That’s all.
A political reporter who has exposed the story of Mehdi Hassan’s Al Jazeera TV interview recently analyzed how Ranil was beaten in London. He also analyzes that the discussion that took place in Conway Hall was not a traditional debate, but akin to a political autopsy. He also says that there was no one other than Ranil Wickremesinghe at the autopsy table. The commentator had stated that Ranil Wickremesinghe had hoped to regain his global respect in the ‘Head to Head’ program, but he had almost literally and figuratively fled the scene. Therefore, Ranil’s mask was said to have been exposed again in front of the crowd gathered in Conway Hall.
vague sarcasm
When the journalist pointed out Sri Lanka’s ongoing struggles with corruption, economic mismanagement and political instability on Al Jazeera, Wickremesinghe had nothing to offer but vague sarcasm and an unmistakable sense of inferiority. At one point, a frustrated Ranil Wickremesinghe said in an emotional tone:
‘I don’t want to answer these kinds of questions. Is this a YouTube show?’
‘No, Mr. Wickremesinghe, this is a global platform. You cannot evade accountability,’ said Mehdi Hassan.
Public Image
By the end of the television show, Wickremesinghe’s public image was crumbling. He did not answer many questions directly and was seen to be acting impulsively. The audience watched as Ranil Wickremesinghe struggled uncomfortably, his confidence evaporating with each sharp accusation. There was no applause from them, but they were seen to be in a state of bewildered murmuring. The man who once appeared to be the steady hand guiding Sri Lanka through stormy seas has now been revealed as a leader who cannot even face his past or justify his present.
This is where the climax of this story comes. It was reported that Ranil Wickremesinghe, who faced a failed media conference in London, England, abruptly ended his visit to England and left for Oman, avoiding the media there. In this situation, a British politician has made a wonderful statement. ‘Ranil is finished now. He should retire before he is humiliated any further. If he does not resign, the people will do it for him…’
Richard and Vijaya
A popular film among MPs and politicians these days is the film ‘Rani’ directed by Ashoka Handagama. The film, which was based on the murder of former journalist Richard de Zoysa, was financed by controversial businessman Aliraja Subaskaran, the owner of Lyca Mobile. When asked by many who watched the film, they stated that it seems that the owner of Lyca Mobile has produced this film ‘Rani’ intending to build a relationship with the current government and help the government.
However, the film ‘Rani’ has become a ‘hit’ in the film industry. It can also be seen that both good and bad criticism is being directed at it. Although the film shows Richard’s mother looking away angrily when former President Premadasa arrives at Richard de Zoysa’s house, it is clear from two photos that have now been posted on social media that she has not behaved like that in reality. In the true photo, Premadasa could be seen sitting next to Richard de Zoysa’s mother, Manorani and, talking with her. This is contrary to how it is depicted in the film.
Rajeeve Wijesinghe comments
However, since the release of the film, various groups have been commenting on it. At the forefront of this was Professor Rajeeva Wijesinghe, who was considered one of Richard’s closest friends at the time. Last week, Rajeeva made several controversial revelations for the first time in an interview with Sanjaya Nallaperuma for the ‘Aruna newspaper. In it, Rajeeva explained his old friendship with Richard up until the time he was assassinated. However, after the publication of this article, Uvindu Kurukulasuriya, a former journalist of the ‘Ravaya’ newspaper who is currently in London, added something special to it. It is a statement that journalist Varuna Karunathilaka allegedly made to Victor Ivan regarding Richard. The statement is shown below.
‘Good memory, But later, Varuna told Ivan that Richard was in the JVP, had secretly led strikes, and was translating Wijeweera’s book ‘What is the Solution to Tamil Eelam’ into English when he was murdered. But none of that was said to the public even by Manorani. The murder was socialized as the murder of a human rights activist. Years later, Victor wrote down the stories he learned from Varuna. The editor of ‘The Island’, Gamma, who was angry about it, wrote an editorial along the lines ‘Why didn’t you tell me this earlier and portray him as a human rights activist?’
Comrade Lionel
Amidst all this, the horrors of the assassination of Richard de Zoysa have come to the fore in various ways. While Aliraja Subaskaran and Ashoka Handagama were making the film ‘Rani’, Dharman Wickramaratne, a senior journalist and newspaper editor, embarked on a new venture. He has written a new book on the 41 slayings including Vijaya who was murdered in 1988-89.
At that time, Dharman was also branded as a JVP supporter. This was because Dharman had written articles for the ‘Divaina newspaper on the JVP student movement. Through this, Dharman became a popular figure in the country. But after the JVP rebellion ended, Dharman took steps to reveal to the country evidence of many brutal murders during the terror period that no one had exposed. Dharman walked around the country and searched for information about people who were said to have been killed by the JVP.
He wrote about them in the newspapers. Accordingly, Dharman is now preparing to make the same proposal that made a hit through Handagamage’s film ‘Rani’ a hit by releasing the murder of Vijaya through a book. Dharman has chosen the anonymous testimony of Lionel Ranasinghe, who is considered to be the JVP activist who killed 41 people including Vijaya. Accordingly, Dharman has taken steps to release a book with a lot of information so that those in the mood for ‘Rani’ will have a balanced mood. The title of the book is ‘The Story of a Gunman who killed 41 People including Vijaya Kumaratunga during the 2nd JVP rebellion – Comrade Lionel’.
