President pacifies P.B.!

Thursday, 29 May 2014 

After playing havoc at Temple Trees yesterday morning (28) upon his return from the swearing-in ceremony of the new Indian prime minister, the president set aside his differences and attended the launch of the finance ministry’s annual report for 2013 at the Financial Studies Institute auditorium in Colombo Fort later in the day in order to show that there is no antagonism at all between his government and finance ministry secretary P.B. Jayasundara.

Participating in the function, the president said that it was the finance ministry that is blamed most, and its secretary has to face the brunt, as the finance minister cannot be blamed politically. “I too, as a government minister, not only scolded the finance ministry secretary, but also tried to assault him. The finance secretary of the government then got excited when ministers scolded him. But, the present finance secretary does not get excited like that. What he does is sending his resignation letter to me,” he said with a smile.

Satisfied with the president’s response, the finance ministry has told participants having refreshments after the launch, “whatever the mediamen say, the president knows about me. He knows that I do all of these for the betterment of the country and not for any personal gain. There was a rumour making rounds recently that the president had scolded me in filth.  Had he done so, would he have made such a statement today? Those in the media and the ministers do not understand the seriousness of this. I run the economy with practical theory, more than economic theories. World’s best banking governor today Mark Carney cannot do what I am doing.”