(Lanka-e-News - 20.Oc.2017, 11.30PM) The mendacious front page headline news yesterday (19) captioned ‘Against new constitution’ came in for heavy flak from Prime Minister (P.M.) Ranil Wickremesinghe . This newspaper canard which attributed this report to Ven. Malwatte Mahanayake when he is not in the Island is an absolute lie concocted by the unscrupulous media coolies . ‘Now the Island newspaper is publishing bogus reports going even beyond the people’s referendum’ said the P.M. while displaying the newspaper which carried the canard.
The P.M. made these comments when addressing a media briefing held today at the parliamentary complex to receive the reports based on the survey conducted by three Institutions including the SL College of mass media pertaining to the proposed constitution . The P.M. elaborated as follows :
‘We are currently garnering opinions of the people regarding the proposed constitution and we are getting ready to hold a debate next week pertaining to the constitution in the making. Following that debate when opinions are being requested , the report handed over today shall be made use of alongside the public opinions. I thank you for providing such a report to me regarding the proposed constitution.
You made allegations that the people are being misled by some after you identified their deceptions . Who are those misleading the public? I saw today reports in all the newspapers and other media along with Ven. Malwatte Mahanayake’s photo that the latter had made a statement.
However when I spoke to Ven. Malwatte Mahanayake to inquire about this , he replied ,’ I am not in the country these days let alone make a statement.’ In the circumstances how did such a report along with his photo appear in the media?
Isn’t that misreporting of the media intended to mislead the people ? The Malwatte Mahanayake clearly expressed his opinion regarding the new constitution on an earlier occasion: The constitution has still not been formulated, it is still at discussion stage , and that the president as well as the Prime Minister will accept his suggestions.
Nevertheless , after these latest reports , I thought of communicating with the mahanayake. It is only then I understood the correct picture. If the media discussion was convened by Diyawadane Nilame of Kandy , it is his photograph that should have been published , and not Malwatte Mahanayake’s. I am expecting to inquire about this from Diyawadena Nilame .
There is no issue if your media publishes the opinion of the Mahanayake duly irrespective of whether that is for or against .
Therefore I would like to ask from the media of this country why are you publishing such mendacious reports attributing those to Ven. Mahanayake when he has not said anything like that , and when he is not in the Island ?
When the journalists of media Institutions are summoned and questioned about this , what is the answer you can give? Nobody gave a direct answer. I request ,If you can , publish these questions I am posing too , via your media by noon.
The chiefs of your media Institutions should inquire where the Malwatte Mahanayake is now, and reveal that. By publishing such canards what is going to happen to the country ? Is your Institution going to publish my statements in the front page or in the last page ? If you are publishing what are being told by others relating to the constitution , your media must publish mine too , as I am the prime minister.
If you can publish such a false report as headline news when Malwatte Mahanayake is not in the country , shouldn’t you publish my views too as front page news? Can you promise to publish my announcements made during this media discussion via the Broadcasting and television channels without distorting what I said ?
The people have given us a mandate . In such circumstances , as media what is the ‘game’ you are trying to play by deliberately deceiving the people? Are the newspapers like Lanka Deepa , Island ,and Daily Mirror , as well as some electronic media compelling us to go counter to the people’s mandate? All what I am asking from the media Institutions which did the sordid biddings of Rajapakse regime is to put a full stop to this villainous ‘game’ they are playing.
If you would ask immediately from your media chiefs why such misleading mendacious reports were published ,and tell me , I am ready to give immediate answers right now, in which event your media will have the opportunity to publish that too. ‘
Though the P.M. responded to the mendacious news reports promptly and exposed the conspiracy of the sordid media against the introduction of new constitution based on the mandate given by the people twice ,it is a matter for surprise , why the president who attended the commemoration of a senior editor D.B. Dhanapala yesterday , was keeping silent .
Political analysts in Colombo expressed a divergent view : It is with the knowledge of the president the underhand conspiracy is being hatched to get around the registrars of Sangha working committee monks and infamous Basnayake nilame to make a statement against the proposed constitution.
It is also the opinion of the political analysts in Colombo , this conspiratorial move is to square off the humiliation president faced when the Tamil politicians of the North mounted huge protests against his visit to the North.
The video footage of the speech of P.M. when he severely reprimanded the sordid mendacious media ,and took them to task is hereunder
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by (2017-10-20 18:32:11)
 - president silent !)
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