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All party group plus Karu J urges immediate re-negotiation with creditors

Published

4 years ago

2022/02/13

Three watchdog committee heads join talks with opposition MPs

In the wake of Finance Minister Basil Rajapaksa announcing his willingness to go to the IMF seeking financial support to solve the current crisis, the government and opposition MPs on Thursday agreed at a closed-door meeting convened by TNA Parliamentarian MA Sumanthiran to urge government to start renegotiating with the country’s creditors without further delay.

“We have agreed that the government should commence renegotiating with our creditors before we run out of our existing foreign reserves so that we could reschedule our loan settlements. It was also seen in the discussion that the renegotiation would be a multi-step process. We also discussed similar experiences by other countries such as Argentina and Uruguay.

“We also discussed that any solution that should come out in those negotiations should ensure that the continuous flow of essential goods to the market and the ensuring that the poor and vulnerable sectors of our society are never compromised. We also agreed that there should be a condition from our side that the welfare and social protection measures should continue without any pruning,” Convenor of the meeting MP Sumanthiran told the Sunday Island.

The meeting was attended by TNA leader R Sampanthan, SJB leader Sajith Premadasa, former Speaker Karu Jayasuriya, SLMC leader Rauf Hakim, Leader of the Tamil Progressive Alliance Mano Ganesan, SJB MPs Dr Harsha de Silva and Eran Wickremaratne, TNA MP Shanakiyan Rasamanikam, COPE Chairman Prof Charitha Herath, COPA Chairman Prof Tissa Vitarana and COPF Chairman Anura Priyadarshana Yapa.

It was the second of a series of meeting convened by MP Sumanthiran. It was held at Waters Edge in Battaramulla and lasted for over one and half hours. The first meeting was held on Jan 27 at Cinnamon Grand and attended by UNP leader Ranil Wickremesinghe, MP Kabir Hashim and JVP MP Dr Harini Amarasuriya.

“Both were closed-door meetings to save time and considering the prevailing situation. They were not secret meetings, because they were open to MPs and political leaders concerned with finding a collective response for the economic crisis our nation is confronted with. Our main objective was to to brainstorm ways to tide over the crisis, given the responsibility we have towards people,” Sumanthiran said.

“We will convey our agreements to the government in the coming days,” he said.

A paper signed by Sumanthiran after the first meeting said: “Sri Lanka is in the midst of an unprecedented economic crisis, causing severe hardship to all segments of our society, especially our working people and the poor.

“Undoubtedly, the government has a daunting task ahead, and as a country there is a need for us all to come together to overcome this challenge.

At the same time, the government’s approach to resolving the crisis raises some serious questions. Its focus, almost solely on meeting foreign debt obligations, is draining the country of dollars needed for importing essentials for our people. The government’s emphasis on avoiding a default at any cost appears to be downplaying a fundamental question – can our people eat? After all, a country’s pride rests not only in repaying its loans, but also in ensuring no citizen goes to bed hungry.

“I approached parliamentary colleagues and party leaders, in my capacity as a former chairman of the Committee on Public Finance in Parliament. MPs came together in the knowledge that Parliament is expected to have full control of public finance, and that each MP, therefore, also has a fiduciary responsibility to ensure the proper management of public finances in Sri Lanka.

“The crisis, we noted, is of a proportion that is historically unprecedented for many reasons:

(1) The country’s ratings have fallen to the level of being blacklisted in international credit markets.

Since April 2020, Sri Lanka has been locked out of borrowing using International Sovereign Bonds (ISBs) in the international market

(2) Repaying US dollar debt in this context means that the usable foreign reserves are down to below one month of imports – the lowest on record since independence.

(3) The ratio of interest on debt to government revenue was above 70% in 2020, a historical high for Sri Lanka, and amongst the highest in the world.

(4) The ratio of public debt compared to the value of Sri Lanka’s domestic production (GDP) is also the highest on record, at 120%. It skyrocketed, by almost 25 percentage points, in the last two years.”

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Rs 1. 3 bn yahapalana building deal under investigation

Published

4 hours ago

2025/12/12

Thilina Walpola

Jayasinghe building

Several ex-Cabinet ministers questioned; Ranil, Sajith, too likely to be summoned

The Commission to Investigate Allegations of Bribery or Corruption (CIABOC) has initiated an inquiry into the shifting of the Agriculture Ministry situated at Rajamalwatte, to a building belonging to the D. P. Jayasinghe Group of Companies, at Rajagiriya, during the Yahapalana government.

The building was rented for a five-year period at a cost of over Rs 1 bn by the yahapalana government within months after the then President Maithripala Sirisena declared opened the 10-storey building complex.

The CIABOC yesterday morning recorded former yahapalana minister Gayantha Karunatilleke’s statement in connection with the investigation. Later in the day, CIABOC recorded the statement of SJB General Secretary Ranjith Maddumabanadara. Earlier CIABOC summoned former ministers Thalatha Atukorale, Wajira Abeywardena and Lakshman Kiriella. At the time of the finalisation of the deal, KIriella was in the UNP.

Sources said that former PM and President Ranil Wickremesinghe, too, was likely to be questioned in this regard. Responding to The Island queries, sources pointed out even SJB leader Sajith Premadasa was expected to be questioned.

The then Speaker Karu Jayasuriya is on record as having said that the building was rented in keeping with a decision taken by the government and not Parliament.

The UNP-SLFP coalition shifted the Agriculture Ministry to accommodate 16 Sectoral Oversight Committees therein.

Although the government paid as much as Rs. 21.5 mn monthly rent to D.P.A. Jayasinghe Company, the Agriculture Ministry failed to move in for over a year. The then Agriculture Minister Duminda Dissanayake sought Cabinet approval on Dec 1, 2015 to rent the building.

According to inquiries conducted earlier by the Presidential Commission appointed to probe state sector corruption, the Agriculture Ministry sought Cabinet approval for a new building after the then Prime Minister Wickremesinghe submitted a cabinet proposal on 21 September, 2015, to use the Agriculture Ministry building for Parliament’s sectoral oversight committees.

PM Wickremesinghe’s Secretary Saman Ekanayake has told the Commission that public funds could have been saved if the several vacant floors of Suhurupaya belonging to the Defence Ministry had been made available to the Agriculture Ministry.

By Shamindra Ferdinando ✍️

News

SL Railways suffers staggering losses; more than 2/3 of rail tracks out of service

Published

4 hours ago

2025/12/12

Thilina Walpola

Army personnel engaged in repairing damaged railway tracks in the Boo Oya area. Cyclone Ditwah caused extensive damage to railway tracks in several parts of the country (pic courtesy Army)

Railway sources said that the damages caused to railway tracks could be more than USD 300 mn.

According to UNDP Rapid Crisis Assessment Sri Lanka’s railroad system, over 278 km of railways were exposed to cyclone-related flooding, including 35 railroad bridges nationwide. This figure reflects flooding only, but other hazards (such as localised debris, landslides, or damage to a single bridge) can also disrupt operations, meaning that even relatively small obstructions can render long stretches of railway non-operational. Like road exposure, railway exposure limits mobility and the capacity of affected populations to access key services and infrastructure.

At the level of divisional secretariats, Colombo and Thimbirigasyaya in Colombo District, Ja Ela in Gampaha District, as well as Mannar Town and Nanaddan in Mannar District all registered over 10 km of exposed railways each.

Commissioner-General of Essential Services B.K. Prabath Chandrakeerthi is on record as having said that only 478 kilometers of Sri Lanka’s 1,593-km railway network were currently usable following extensive damage caused by the recent cyclone.

News

US, SL advancing free, open, and resilient Indo-Pacific region: Embassy

Published

4 hours ago

2025/12/12

Thilina Walpola

Allison Hooker

Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs Allison Hooker arrived in Colombo yesterday (11) to underscore US interest in defence, trade and maritime security in line with their Indo-Pacific strategy.

The US embassy here issued the following statement: “Under Secretary Hooker will meet with Sri Lankan counterparts to discuss a wide range of bilateral issues, focused on deepening economic and commercial ties, strengthening defence cooperation, and supporting Sri Lanka’s economic and maritime sovereignty.

The United States and Sri Lanka share a strong and enduring partnership rooted in our mutual commitment to regional security, economic growth, and prosperity for our peoples. Through close cooperation on defence, trade, and maritime security, we are working together to advance a free, open, and resilient Indo-Pacific region.

As we continue to build on our strategic partnership, the United States also stands with the people of Sri Lanka as they respond to the devastating impacts of Cyclone Ditwah. We remain committed to working together to address both immediate challenges and long-term opportunities for our two nations, reflecting our ongoing commitment to the U.S.-Sri Lanka partnership.”