(Lanka-e-News -03.March.2017, 11.30PM) Thilanga Sumathipala the infamous bookmaker who is breaking records in financial profligacy – wasting the funds of the Sri Lanka cricket association had broken a similar record while in Australia by indulging in yet another extravagant inane Tamasha , according to reports reaching Lanka e news from Melbourne.
A ‘Melbourne party’ was held in Australia recently when the SL cricket team was there . This was one in a series of ‘dinner parties’ that are being thrown abroad country -wise in violation of the constitution of the cricket association under the guise of collecting donations under ‘cricket aid’ project , which in fact are ‘dead losses’ like Sumathipala himself is to cricket in SL .
Believe it or not ! This party was organized by Susantha Katugampola in Melbourne , a lawyer who has not even held a bat though he is supposed to have a bat which even the moths have refused to eat. Still more shocking ! While there were dozens of our players in Australia , it is this bloke who was appointed as SL’s cricket representative there. This scoundrel who did all the sordid biddings for the Rajapakse regime until the point of their saying to him , ‘you are doing our sordid biddings much more than even our latrine coolie ’, is now like a slave laboring assiduously to make ‘Gota’ the next president , when Gota himself is aware that is only a pipe dream.
Based on information conveyed by inside sources of the cricket association , and our own Melbourne correspondent , these Tamashas of unlimited enjoyment and extravagance after taking the players dressed in tie and coat there , raked in no earnings at all in much the same way as the cricket ‘dinner circus’ that was performed in the UK earlier on.
Of course ,as always our sports minister Dayasiri Jayasekera and some other ministers too had their Lion’s share of fun and frolic via these Tamashas at the expense of association funds , as though they have been elected by the people to fatten only themselves on even death and despair of the masses. While ministers Dayasiri Jayasekera , Nimal Lansa (kudu Lansa) and Arundhika Fernando ( Ethanol Arundhika) were having their mirth and merriment on this tour of Melbourne and enjoying these sumptuous ‘carnival’ dinner parties to saturation point at the expense of the cricket Association funds , it was, Shammi Silva, the treasurer ,cricket association who had made arrangements to meet all their expenses including ticket fares , dinners and their devil may care fun and frolic out of association funds.
Cricket election organizers Sujeewa Godaliyeddha , Raveen Wickremeratne , Shammi Silva, Janaka Pathirane , Aruna De Silva and Priyantha Soysa close cronies of Thilanga , as well as a member of Shammi Silva’s sports club were all participants in this tour wasting cricket association funds. What’s more ? Sujeewa and Raveen took along their spouses too . Raveen ‘s son who is studying in Australia , as well as the family of cricket association secretary Mohan De Silva too joined in the grand dinner ‘circus’ not as acrobats but as gormandizers.
Though grandiose arrangements were made to sell commemorative souvenirs , only one bat could be sold, and the maximum bid made was US Dollars 2500.00 . This sum was even less than the cost of ticket fares of two participants in this tour !
Can you beat that ! though there were so many Sri Lankan cricketers residing in Australia ,except Asanka Gurusinghe no one else attended the function. Where ten guests should sit at a table , 13 were seated. Though Gurusinghe is a close friend of Arjuna , he had attended the dinner because he was expecting to secure an official post in SL’s cricket arena. By now he has secured the post of manager of the SL team and his hope bore fruit. However there is an issue revolving around this appointment . While Ranjith Fernando has been appointed as tournament manager , how come Gurusinghe is appointed as team manager ? This has triggered a conflict.
Even to sell tickets valued at US $ 100.00 was a traumatic experience and a huge ‘headache’ to the organizers because popular cricketers did not attend . Since 50 of the seats were allocated to the cricket association , the meager proceeds of the few tickets sold was enough only to pay the hotel bill .In other words even that small profit earned from the sale of tickets was deprived.
On the earlier tour of England too by playing hell with that tour similarly through extravagant Tamashas and sumptuous dinners , association funds were wasted without let or hindrance. This tour of Melbourne too was a repetition of that most destructive profligate exercise. But , the most tragic part of these devastating cricket association fund wasting ‘circuses’ is , these are not going to halt here and now with these tours , staff of the association point out with concern.
The boxes containing commemorative souvenirs which were sent from SL to England in view of the ‘circus’ to showcase Sri Lankan cricket have been returned . Though those have been returned to Shammi in his name , what happened to them thereafter is unknown. Raveen Wickremeratne who went to England supposedly to organize this grand ‘fiasco’ has collected US dollars 9000.00 ! from the cricket association .
It is significant to note ,despite the fact the COPE committee questioned the registration of ‘cricket aid’ project as a separate entity of cricket association , minister of sports Dayasiri Jayasekera in charge in this regard has not questioned on the colossal corruption and wastage of funds of the association nor uttered a word against it because of the self serving benefits he is deriving , and his close ties with Thilanga and Shammi .
(These photographs herein depict some scenes of the ‘Melbourne grand Tamasha’ fiasco which raked in no profits )
By a Lanka e news special correspondent
Translated by Jeff
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by (2017-03-03 18:28:21)
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