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Debt restructuring: Sajith alleges Prez failed to secure optimal deal

Published

2 years ago

2024/07/3

Sahan Weerasooriya

Sajith

By Saman Indrajith

Opposition and SJB leader Sajith Premadasa told Parliament yesterday (02) that the government had failed to secure the optimal deal in the debt restructuring process.

Soon after the President made a special statement to the House, Premadasa said that the government haD failed to secure the best possible deal in the debt restructuring process. The globe-trotting President could have made use of his visits to secure the best possible deal to Sri Lanka. “The President says that the government has assured the best interests of this country but there are serious issues with regard to financial discipline and deliverance and promises it makes,” Premadasa said.

The government had not yet been able to provide thE House with bi-lateral agreements it had entered in relation to the debt-restructuring process, Premadasa said..

The President’s statement that Sri Lanka had been able to enter into agreements to restructure debt earlier than other countries that had been in similar economic crises was not true. Countries such as Ghana, Argentina, Ecuador, Barbados, Belize, Mongolia and Chad succeeded in entering into debt-restructuring agreements before Sri Lanka, said the Opposition Leader.

“We expected the President to furnish all necessary information pertaining to the debt-restructuring agreement. However, there was no such presentation. We are waiting to see whether Sri Lanka has been able to restructure the debts in a manner favourable to this country. We are yet to find whether the incumbent government could fare better than Argentina, Ghana and Ecuador in the debt restructuring agreement,” Premadasa said.

“The President, in his statement to the nation, said that we’ll start repaying the loans in 2028. There was a Debt Sustainability Analysis by the IMF in March 2023 stating that Sri Lanka would be able to start the process of repaying its debts from 2033. We demand to know how and why the government could not keep it to 2033 and reasons for starting this in 2028. We think that this is owing to failures that took place during the negotiations.

“The President speaks of a success in the debt-restructuring process without revealing true figures. For example, he stated that the debts we owed to the China Exim Bank was at US $ 3.9 billion and that the bank had agreed to restructuring. But he did not mention anything about the US $ 13.8 million debt we owed to the Chinese Government or US $ 538 million debt to the China Development Bank.

Premadasa said that the government’s debt restructuring process had double standard policy with regard to International Sovereign Bond (ISB) holders and the poor people in the country. It seems that the government has succumbed to the threats and pressure of the ISB holders. In 2022, it was clearly stated that the government would not restructure the local debts. However, in the face of the ISB holders’ threats, the government went for that. It did not even touch the super-rich primary bond dealers but pick-pocketed the monies in the pension funds and EPF. In October 2023, the government announced that it would not implement Value Recovery Instruments. However, after ISB holders exerted pressure, the government implemented Macro-link Bonds. It promised transparency and comparability for domestic bond holders and spoke of equal burden sharing. But there was no burden sharing by ISB holders; instead the government pick-pocketed the poor people’s money in pension funds and EPF.

“The President, in his statement, questioned the achievements this government has been able to make, good or bad. I am asking whether increase of malnutrition is good or bad, whether the brain drain is good or bad, whether the increase of unemployment good or bad, whether the increase of poverty is good or bad, whether the closure of MSMEs in their hundreds of thousands is good or bad, whether the entrepreneurs leaving their professions is good or bad, whether the collapse of construction industry is good or bad, whether the children faint in schools because they have no food is good or bad,” Premadasa demanded to know.

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Advisory for Heavy Rain issued for the Central, Uva, Sabaragamuwa, Eastern and North-central provinces and in Galle and Matara districts

Published

6 hours ago

2026/02/22

Priyan

Advisory for Heavy Rain Issued by the Natural Hazards Early Warning Centre at 08.30 a.m. on 22 February 2026 valid for the period until 08.30 a.m. 23 February 2026

Due to the influence of the low level atmospheric disturbance in the vicinity of Sri Lanka, Heavy showers above 100 mm are likely at some places in Central, Uva, Sabaragamuwa, Eastern and North-central provinces and in Galle and Matara districts.

Therefore, general public is advised to take adequate precautions to minimize damages caused by heavy rain, strong winds and lightning during thundershowers

News

Matara Festival for the Arts’ inaugurated by the Prime Minister

Published

12 hours ago

2026/02/22

Priyan

The inaugural ceremony of the Matara Festival for the Arts, featuring a wide range of creations by local and international artists, was held on February 19 at the Old High Court premises of the Matara Fort, under the patronage of Prime Minister Dr. Harini Amarasuriya.

The festival, centred around the Old High Court premises in Matara and the auditorium of the Matara District Secretariat, will be open to the public from 20 to 23 of February. The festival will be featured by visual art exhibitions, short film screenings, Kala Pola, and a series of workshops conducted by experts.

The inaugural event was attended by the Minister of Women and Child Affairs, Ms. Saroja Paulraj, along with artists, guests, and a large number of schoolchildren.

(Prime Minister’s Media Division)

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Only single MP refuses salary as Parliament details pays and allowances

Published

16 hours ago

2026/02/22

Thilina Walpola

SJB Badulla District MP Nayana Wasalathilake is the only MP to forego salary and allowances, with all payments suspended following his written notification on August 20, 2025.

Only one Member of Parliament has chosen not to receive the salaries and allowances entitled to MPs, Prime Minister Dr. Harini Amarasuriya revealed in Parliament last Thursday, shedding light on the financial perks enjoyed by members of the Tenth Parliament.

Speaking on Thursday (Feb. 19) in response to a question from SJB Badulla District MP Chaminda Wijesiri, the Prime Minister outlined the full range of pay and allowances provided to parliamentarians.

According to Dr. Amarasuriya, MPs receive a monthly allowance of Rs. 54,285, an entertainment allowance of Rs. 1,000, and a driver’s allowance of Rs. 3,500—though MPs provided with a driver through the Ministry of Public Security and Parliamentary Affairs are not eligible for the driver’s allowance.

Additional benefits include a telephone allowance of Rs. 50,000, a transport allowance of Rs. 15,000, and an office allowance of Rs. 100,000. MPs are also paid a daily sitting allowance of Rs. 2,500 for attending parliamentary sessions, with an additional Rs. 2,500 per day for participation in parliamentary sittings and Rs. 2,500 per day as a committee allowance.

Committee meetings held on non-parliament sitting days also attract Rs. 2,500 per day.

Fuel allowances are provided based on the distance between an MP’s electoral district and Parliament. National List MPs are entitled to a monthly allocation equivalent to 419.76 litres of diesel at the market price on the first day of each month.

Despite the comprehensive benefits, only SJB Badulla District MP Nayana Wasalathilaka has opted not to draw a salary or allowances. Dr. Amarasuriya said that in accordance with a written notification submitted by MP Wasalathilaka on August 20, 2025, payments have been suspended since that date.

The Prime Minister also confirmed that she, along with the Speaker, Deputy Speaker, committee chairs, ministers, deputy ministers, the Opposition Leader, and senior opposition whips, have all informed the Secretary-General of Parliament in writing that they will not claim the fuel allowance.

Challenging the ruling party’s voluntary pledge to forgo salaries, MP Wijesiri pointed out that all MPs except Wasalathilaka continue to receive their salaries and allowances. “On one hand you speak about the people’s mandate, which is good. But the mandate also included people who said they would voluntarily serve in this Parliament without salaries. Today we have been able to prove, Hon. Speaker, that except for one SJB MP, the other 224 Members are drawing parliamentary salaries,” he said.

The Prime Minister responded by defending the political culture and practice of allocating portions of MPs’ salaries to party funds. Referring to previous practices by the JVP and NPP, she said: “It is no secret to the country that the JVP has for a long time not personally taken MPs’ salaries or any allowances. I think the entire country knows that these go to a party fund. That is not new, nor is it something special to mention. The NPP operates in the same way. That too is not new; it is the culture of our political movement.”

When MP Wijesiri posed a supplementary question asking whether diverting salaries to party funds was an indirect method of taking care of MPs, Dr. Amarasuriya said: “There is no issue there. No question was raised; the Member made a statement. What we have seen throughout this week is an inability to understand our political culture and practice, and a clash with decisions taken by political movements that misused public funds. What is coming out is a certain mindset. That is why there is such an effort to find fault with the 159. None of these facts are new to people. He did not ask a question, so I have nothing to answer.”

The disclosures come days after the Government moved to abolish the parliamentary pension, a measure that has sparked renewed debate over MP compensation and the transparency of funds allocation.