His claim misleading– NPP

Jathika Jana Balawegaya Kegalle District MP Kabir Hashim told Parliament yesterday that incumbent President Anura Kumara Dissanayake had emulated his predecessor, Ranil Wickremesinghe, by allotting the same amount of funds for the period from January to April 2025.

Speaking during a debate on the Vote on Account presented for parliamentary approval by the government, MP Hashim noted that Wickremesinghe had allocated Rs. 1.4 trillion rupees to himself.

“This Vote on Account reveals that President Dissanayake has made the same allocation. When Wickremesinghe did so, the NPP and its leader Dissanayake criticised him. People voted for them expecting change. Where is the promised change?” Hashim said.

Hashim also said the government should seek parliamentary approval for the debt sustainability agreement with international sovereign bond holders before implementing it.

He mentioned that over Rs. 3 billion had been allocated for debt sustainability, while an additional Rs. 3 billion had been set aside for legal consultancy fees related to the debt restructuring programme.

NPP National List MP Lakmali Hemachandra, participating in the debate, said that USD 1.3 billion provided by the FAO to the Presidential Secretariat was included in the Vote on Account under the President’s Office heading, and that had resulted in an expenditure allocation for President Dissanayake similar to that of former President Wickremesinghe.

“The incumbent president has reduced expenses for his private staff by 64 percent,” MP Hemachandra added.