The Frontline Socialist Party (FSP) has alleged that the NPP government, too, like its predecessor, was creating a situation where medicines can be purchased at higher prices outside tender procedures.

The Education Secretary of the FSP Pubudu Jayagoda yesterday (04) alleged that the NPP Cabinet was planning to endorse the Health Ministry move. Addressing the media at the party office in Nugegoda, Jayagoda alleged that the NPP had adopted a strategy similar to that of Keheliya Rambukwella to procure medicines.

The FSP said: “The status quo ante has been restored in respect of health sector procurements. Time was when tenders were deliberately delayed. Orders weren’t placed on time, creating artificial shortages. Then, emergency purchases were made at higher prices; often substandard drugs were purchased. This government came to power promising reforms, but now the question is whether it is doing what it blamed its predecessor for.

“We have received information about a cabinet paper that Health Minister Nalin Jayathissa is going to present to the Cabinet tomorrow. According to an audit report dated March 29, 2025, Sri Lanka faces a shortage of 313 essential medicines over the next three months and 202 of these drugs can be procured through regular means.

“For the remaining 101 medicines, the Health Minister proposes in Sections 2.3 and 2.4 of the Cabinet paper standard procurement procedures should be bypassed and procurement should be done as government-to-government (G2G) deals in violation of the fundamental procurement regulations of transparent competitive bidding processes and the selection of the lowest bidder. Further, the Minister proposes to appoint a seven-member committee to formulate the new procurement methodology and to delegate the selection of supplier countries for medicine procurement to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

“According to Section 8.1 of the Procurement Guidelines, direct procurement without calling for tenders is permitted only under four specific circumstances. That is when the medicine is produced by only one manufacturer, during emergency situations such as pandemics; when there is a severe shortage of the medicine and when the medicine is produced by the State Pharmaceutical Manufacturing Corporation. The justification being used now is the ‘medicine shortage’ clause.

“But how did this shortage occur in the first place? Under the Ranil Wickremesinghe government in August 2024, then-Health Minister Ramesh Pathirana attempted to replace existing medicine suppliers with a group of cronies. When that move drew heavy criticism, the Ministry got cold feet.

“Under pressure from the Indian High Commission, the government tried to procure medicines directly from India without calling for tenders. The current NPP government is now following in the footsteps of the previous Ranil-Ramesh administration. While working on procurement methodologies for 2026, they did not take action to place orders for essential medicines for 2025 even by November-December 2024.”