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Contradictory figures in proposals show govt.’s inability to prepare annual budget – Rajitha Senaratne

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by Saman Indrajith

SJB Kalutara District MP Dr. Rajitha Senaratne says that the government’s budget proposals with contradictory figures is a testimony to the government’s inability to prepare the annual budget.

Participating in the second reading stage debate on the budget proposals, the MP said on page 51 of the budget report, government expenditure has been mentioned as Rs. 3,525 billion but on the very next page, on Page 52, government expenditure has been given as Rs 3,594 billion.

“The difference between the revenue and the expenditure is mentioned on Page 51 as Rs. 1,564 billion and on Page 52 as Rs. 1,665 billion.  The deficit is mentioned as Rs. 23.9 billion on Page 5, but Annexure III mentions it as 3.2 billion,” he said.

Dr. Senaratne said the budget proposals and allocations are not realistic. There is a proposal to build 50,000 kilometers of carpeted roads. The allocation for the purpose is Rs 20,000 million. Usually the cost for one km of carpeted road is around 12 million rupees. Accordingly the allocation would be sufficient only to build 1,600 km.

“There is another proposal to build 10,000 bridges and Rs. 7,000 million has been allocated. The cost per bridge would be around 70 million so they could build only 100 bridges. In the 2019 budget, we allocated Rs. 654 billion for relief and subsidies but this government has allocated only Rs. 581 billion by cutting off Rs. 73 billions. The government cannot release figures of the growth rate for the second and third quarters of this year because they know the figures would come in minus double digits”, he said.

The economy is on a fast track towards total collapse. So far around 45,000 Lankan workers have returned home and there are around 100,000 more to come. They would contribute to the increase in the number of unemployed which is 483,000 at present. There are around 86,000 industries in the country and of them 30,000 have faced the threat of closure,” he said.

Dr. Senaratne said that the government has proposed building pharmaceutical manufacturing institutions as if it is their own concept. “It was during our time that we started the process. We signed agreements for pharmaceutical manufacturing companies and 18 have already commenced work,” he said.

“The government gave a Rs 5,000 allowance twice as COVID-19 relief. It amounted to 0.003 percent of government revenue. Other governments in the world paid salaries to their people for months,” the Kalutara District MP said.



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LG Commissioners in dilemma over guidelines and Elections Act

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Executive Director of the Institute for Democratic Reforms and Electoral Studies (IRES) Manjula Gajanayake has said the Local Government Commissioners have created confusion and a severe erosion of public trust in the electoral process at local level by adhering to election laws  and administrative guidelines selectively without adopting a consistent approach.

The authority to establish local government bodies— particularly the hung ones––has been granted to the Local Government Commissioners in the nine provinces. However, this process has now sparked controversy largely due to ambiguity over how to elect council heads.

At the heart of the issue is the Local Government Elections Act, which does not specify the procedures to be followed in electing the heads of local bodies. To address this issue, the Secretary to the Ministry of Local Government and Provincial Councils has issued a 28-page set of guidelines. This guideline gained much  attention during the election of the Mayor of the Colombo Municipal Council, where opposition members claimed that the head of the council had to be elected according to the guidelines in question. However, the guidelines merely state, “Each member should be consulted, and the method of voting should be decided accordingly.”

The Opposition seemed to have ignored that there were three acceptable methods of voting––by a show of hands, through a secret ballot, or by using an electronic system, Gajanayake said. Still, the real issue lies in the application of the guidelines by the Local Government Commissioners.

For instance, the Western Province Commissioner opted for a secret ballot in the Colombo MC. In contrast, in many other councils, the voting method was determined based on the  preference of the majority of members. In Local Government Institutions in  Uva, North Central, and North Western provinces, where members called for open votes by the show of hands— the commissioners  complied.

However, inconsistency re-emerged in the first meeting of the Seethawakapura Urban Council of the Colombo District in the Western Province. Out of 25 members,14 requested an open vote. The Commissioner, however, insisted on a secret ballot. As a result, all 14 members walked out in protest, and the meeting was adjourned without electing a head.

By PRIYAN DE SILVA  ✍️

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Hotel shooting: Weligama police probe riddled with flaws, CID tells committee

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Deshabandu Tennakoon

CID Director of Investigations Ashoka Shelton Karunathilaka told the Parliamentary Inquiry Committee probing the interdicted IGP Deshabandu Tennakoon that numerous flaws had been found in the investigations carried out by the Weligama Police into a shooting incident at the W15 Hotel.

Giving evidence before the special inquiry committee, chaired by Supreme Court Justice Preethi Padman Surasena, Karunathilaka said that the Weligama Police had proceeded with their investigation riddled with flaws. “Even the locations of spent bullet casings at the crime scene were not properly marked. There was a mismatch between the empty bullet casings and the recovered ammunition. Additionally, CCTV footage from the crime scene area shows inconsistencies.These investigative shortcomings were the reason why legal action was taken against the OIC of the Weligama Police Criminal Investigation Division. Moreover, no proper investigation was carried out into the police officer who was fatally shot.”.

The committee met for the eighth day on Wednesday, when seven witnesses testified. The final witness of the day was Karunathilaka, who pointed out the deficiencies in the initial investigations by the Weligama Police.

At this point, counsel S. Weerawikrama, representing Deshabandu Tennakoon, questioned whether the warrant for Tennakoon’s arrest had been obtained under political or ministerial pressure.

Karunathilaka answered in the negative.

During the session, counsel Weerawikrama raised his voice while cross-examining the witness, prompting one of the committee’s judges to advise him to ask questions without getting agitated.The day’s proceedings concluded with the committee recording the testimonies presented by the prosecution, led by Deputy Solicitor General Dileepa Peiris.

By Kamal Bogoda

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Harshana resigns from Parliament

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Harshana

Secretary General of Parliament Kushani Rohanadeera has informed the Chairman of the Election Commission in writing that a vacancy has arisen in Parliament due to the resignation of Dr. Harshana Suriyapperuma.

Dr. Suriyapperuma, a National List Member of Parliament representing the NPP and the Deputy Minister of Finance and Economic Stabilization, submitted his letter of resignation to the Secretary General of Parliament, Kushani Rohanadeera.

According to the letter submitted by Dr Suriyapperuma, the resignation is effective from June 20, 2025.

Accordingly, the Secretary General has informed the Chairman of the Election Commission that, in terms of Section 64(5) of the Parliamentary Elections Act No. 1 of 1981, the seat held by Dr Harsha Suriyapperuma in the Tenth Parliament is now vacant.

Speculation was rife at the time of going to press that Dr. Suriyapperuma would be appointed Secretary to the Finance Ministry.

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