REFUGEE

Journalists affiliated to main media institutions in the country have been invited by President Mahinda Rajapaksa for a friendly meeting on Tuesday (8) evening.

Many journalists say the invitation for the friendly meeting was a move by the President to feed the journalists and keep them happy in order to get their maximum support at the forthcoming President and general elections.

A similar get-together was organized during the 2005 Presidential election campaign and journalists who attended it received only Soda

to drink and nothing to eat a few hours after the function commenced.

Journalists had to finally pay for their food and drink.

Sources from Temple Trees noted that people in-charge of organizing such events were playing out money from the President and was disgracing him.

Meanwhile, many people who visited meetings at Temple Trees from the outstations during provincial council elections had received spoilt rice packs.

Many journalists commenting on the President’s latest invitation hoped the event this time would be better organized than the last one.