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by Manjula Fernando and Nadira Gunatillake.

Cabinet Spokesman and Minister Mangala Samaraweera yesterday shot down allegations that President Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunga has reprimanded Minister Anura Kumara Dissanayake at the previous Cabinet briefing over corruption charges concerning the tank restoration project.

"This is a complete distortion of the truth," the Minister said at the weekly Cabinet briefing at the Information Department adding that such misinterpretations by the pro-UNP media are aimed at petty political gains.

Minister Mangala Samaraweera

"Certain weekend newspapers who carry a brief for the UNP aspire to highlight that there is an internal clash between the SLFP and the JVP. I want to emphasise that this type of action will only further strengthen the Government and reinforce unity among its constituents," he retorted.

A weekend newspaper carrying a Cabinet paper last Sunday, said the President was critical of programs implemented by ministers belonging to JVP and has expressed dissatisfaction over the 10,000 tanks development project alleging that it lacked transparency.

Minister Anura Dissanayake

Reading out the minutes of the previous Cabinet meeting, the Minister said certain provincial issues concerning the Sahasak Maha Wev project was taken up at the meeting and the matter was cleared with the President completely satisfied with the answers given by Minister Dissanayake.

"No allegation against Minister Dissanayake was made and it was just a progress review by the President," the Minister said.

Dissanayake in response to a question by the Media on the same issue, admitted there were disagreements and sometimes hot arguments within the party constituents.

However, he said these were in the interest of the UPFA, to take forward the Government's program of work correcting past mistakes. "It seems that certain groups derive temporary satisfaction from these minor incidents," he added.

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