Hakiem Hanif

My thoughts on the outcome of #PresidentialElection2024 in #SriLanka ⬇️

@arjun19dev It wasn’t them entirely, I think the team manager at the time (was it Duleep Mendis?) had a key role to play in that

If only all cricketers knew the rules like Sanga did. He and Mahela were so street smart and played the rules like anything! Remember how they made Malinga captain? 😂

@h_liyan Going on a tangent here, but these random American words is how you can spot a ChatGPT generated text, particularly in this part of the world where the British form is generally prevalent

"gasoline"? That's the American word for petrol.

@mqiq_ If he wants to he will. But why does it matter? Imagine telling Roder Federer or Novak that it is not enough they won multiple grand slams, but they also need to go and win other tournaments just because a random person somewhere things so

Realia są takie że przez lata Toto, Mercedes wraz ze Sky budowali Hamiltona jako Boga motorsportu i wmówili Lewisowi że jest 3 półki nad kimkolwiek. Jestem przekonany że Hamilton nigdy nie podejmie się wyzwania poza F1 bo pomnik Boga motorsportu jeszcze bardziej by upadł 👍

@kunalashah @reezi02 It’s not the first time he has had to make that statement tbh. Why not apply this same logic to Alonso? But sure, the guy who has the smallest gap to Charles and who can potentially score another 2 podiums for Ferrari is the problem. Yeah right.

@reezi02 The pressure on Lewis would be internal & external, as it is on every driver. I’m having this discussion for the first time this year, and only after Lewis made a statement yesterday.

I can understand the frustration of Lewis Hamilton’s fans who see the HAM-Ferrari relationship from a one-directional contract point of view. Lewis is the GOAT & could become a SCAPEGOAT for Ferrari’s continued inability to win. When one races for Ferrari, it’s more multi-directional & political than the other F1 teams. Will firing Lewis help Ferrari win? NO! But firing Lewis could indicate the “change” Ferrari is making to try & win. The longer he takes to win, and so does Ferrari, the higher the chances of one becoming a scapegoat. And if not Bearman, Ferrari will find half a dozen other drivers who’ll be willing to race for the Scuderia. Lewis’ shelf life at Ferrari could increase IF Charles Leclerc decides to leave, of course.

reminder that Rolex makes ONE MILLION WATCHES a year and that this is all contrived

@OrdinaryInds Isn’t this something which Apple specifically tells people not to do 🤦‍♂️

This is one of those lessons you can only watch people learn the hard way. Oof.

@ekaitzgilf1 You know, he or any other driver is allowed to do other things away from the race track if they so desire. They don’t have to chase your validation lol

Y por este tipo de cosas (sin atacar ni mucho menos a Lewis), pilotos como Verstappen o Alonso siempre tendrán un respeto superior para mí. Está genial destacar en F1, es la competición más difícil del mundo. Pero si sales de la F1 y brillas en otras carreras… es otro nivel.

@sonaljay8 @SampathBankPLC Hope you have filed a version of the complaint via email (or some form of a paper trail), banks can be very sneaky in situations like this

Been calling the @SampathBankPLC card Centre for the past 2 days due to two “system glitches” which have deducted over LKR 900,000 from my credit card. The response I get: “We are conducting investigations and will get back to you”. So disappointing for a bank I have been constantly saying has brilliant service.

This is my attempt to present a rational argument as to why the government should not continue with fuel subsidies. It is NOT the fault of @CBSL that the LKR is weakening - they are acting as per their mandate; distorting energy prices — particularly fuel, but also electricity through differentiated tariffs across user categories — undermines the market’s ability to curtail demand and allocate resources efficiently. Thank you Jamila Husain and @Dailymirror_SL for giving my piece front-page coverage. Link below.

Hotels that used to give locals a “higher price” than what foreigners would pay during the season are now advertising the most creative local offers imaginable 😂

@ShavinWijetunge @AflalFarouk It’s 5.4% as of today, so 4.8 is reasonable accounting for the timing effect

@hbytwo @AflalFarouk Still it is not 4.8% !!!

Sri Lankan Rupee selling rate has moved from LKR 313 on 1st January 2026 to LKR 338 today, reflecting nearly an 8% depreciation against the USD within a short period.

@AflalFarouk @ShavinWijetunge As of today it’s 5.4%, I don’t know where you are getting your numbers from 🤷‍♂️

@hbytwo @ShavinWijetunge Buying rate is 328.23 while the spot rate is 326.92. Normally spot stays above buying as it reflects the average market rate. Due to volatility this has reversed temporarily. If spot moves to 331 this week, LKR depreciation from Jan 1st will touch nearly 7%.

@ShavinWijetunge @AflalFarouk Central banks don’t use buying/selling rates, they use the SPOT rate which are more representative of an average. Buying and selling rates can vary between banks and based on how deals are negotiated

@AflalFarouk Exactly... cbsl governor lied ... what happened to him ?

Next fuel price revision *might* Market price Petrol and Super Diesel, with SD cross subsidizing Auto Diesel

Applicable to Sri Lanka in the exact same way

Sri Lanka needs to take advantage of this, if Sapugaskanda can use Russian crude

@chopstick_ surely, Steve Jobs nor @Apple expected the App Store to evolve to this level

@FormulaArgOK @DAZN

Estoy completamente de acuerdo con lo que dice el comentarista de @DAZN: Que seas un buen piloto de F1 no te hace buen piloto en todas las categorías, por eso es absolutamente asombroso el nivel demostrado por Max Verstappen en sus dos Stint. Sé que a los negacionistas les duele profundamente, pero Max es el mejor piloto de automovilismo y no hay ninguno por encima de él hoy en día. Ahora sigan llorando. #24hNBR #Nürburgring #Nordschleife #Verstappen

@thimiraonline @PayPal @Wise @WiseBusiness_ I think (and don’t quote me on this) Wise can only decide based on how Sri Lanka’s FATF reviews go. Given the way Wise works, it really doesn’t need CBSL cooperation as much as PayPal or others

Well, well, well. @PayPal has landed in Sri Lanka. @Wise and @WiseBusiness_ when will you be landing in Sri Lanka?

Generating current account surpluses to build foreign exchange reserves fundamentally requires controlling aggregate demand — particularly consumption and investment demand. This is primarily the role of monetary and fiscal policy. Monetary policy influences demand through interest rates and exchange rates, while fiscal policy operates through taxation, subsidies, and government expenditure. Higher real interest rates encourage savings and discourage consumption and borrowing. Likewise, higher taxation reduces disposable income available for spending by both households and businesses. The core objective is the management of overall aggregate demand within the economy. Demerit goods such as cigarettes are discouraged through corrective taxation — taxes imposed above normal levels because of their harmful social and health effects. Vehicles, however, are not demerit goods. They are essential economic assets that enable mobility, logistics, and commerce across the economy. Although vehicles are imported, they catalyze substantial domestic economic activity once brought into the country. Passenger vehicles currently face average taxation of around 150 percent. Taxes collected from vehicle imports in 2025 — largely during the last seven months of the year — generated approximately LKR 905 billion from roughly USD 2 billion in imports. The increase in indirect taxes, dominated by vehicle-related taxation, was one of the largest contributors to GDP growth, accounting for an estimated 15 percent contribution. It was also the primary reason government revenue exceeded budgeted targets — a relatively rare occurrence. Vehicle imports trigger a broad downstream economic ecosystem including trading, financing, insurance, leasing, registration, repairs, maintenance, fuel distribution, logistics, and accessory sales. Suppressing this ecosystem too aggressively risks weakening growth and government revenue simultaneously. That would be particularly damaging at a time when the economy is already facing external shocks arising from the Gulf conflict, including higher energy prices, weaker tourism receipts, elevated fertilizer costs, and pressure on tea export earnings.