News
Under RW’s watch economy has further deteriorated – Prof. Peiris
…interest payments alone increased by USD 2.8 bn; foreign debt USD 100 bn
By Shamindra Ferdinando
Declaring that the economy had further deteriorated under President Ranil Wickremesinghe’s watch since July 2022, dissident SLPP parliamentarian Prof. G. L. Peiris said that the government was working overtime to depict a much improved situation.
Addressing the media at the weekly media briefing held by the Jathika Nidahas Sabhawa at Nawala, the former External Affairs Minister having compared the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and national debt as at April 2022 when Sri Lanka declared bankruptcy and current figures pointed out the further deterioration of the economy.
Lawmaker Peiris stressed that the foreign debt has increased to USD 100 bn from USD 82 bn in April 2022.
Referring to the latest IMF report that dealt with Sri Lanka, the former Minister emphasised that the IMF assessment of the economy here is contrary to the government propaganda. Prof. Peiris explained how the interest payments had increased by USD 2.8 bn during this period whereas the government propaganda chiefs continued to propagate lies claiming the contrary.
The ground reality is that instability increased and the country absolutely lacked the wherewithal to start paying back its debt and the accompanying interest, MP Peiris said.
Commenting on ISB (international sovereign bonds) amounting to USD 12 bn, Prof. Peiris said that Sri Lanka couldn’t reach consensus on an agreement favourable to the country and the situation remained the same. The recent talks held in London failed to resolve the issues at hand with regard to ISBs, Prof. Peiris said, drawing the public attention to USD 6.2 bn and USD 4.3 bn owed to the ADB and the World Bank, respectively.
Responding to The Island query, Prof. Peiris said that the ISB amounting to USD 12 bn had been included in USD 100 bn foreign debt.
The ex-Minister said that the country seemed somewhat comfortable at the moment as the repayment of debt hadn’t been resumed. Declaring that the crisis couldn’t be addressed through propaganda, the internationally reputed law academic said that the domestic debt, too, increased by 9% in the first quarter from USD 52.6 bn to USD 57.2 bn.
Commenting on the continuing controversy over the possibility of the Presidential Poll being put off by at least one year, Prof. Peiris said that, too,was part of their propaganda project.
The UNP leader Wickremesinghe has been elected by Parliament to complete the remainder of ousted President Gotabaya Rajapaksa’s five-year term.
A specialists committee has been appointed by the Secretary to the Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock, Lands and Irrigation adhering to the decision of the Cabinet of Ministers dated 29.12.2025 for submitting appropriate recommendations analyzing the provisions of the draft bill formulation in regard to Animal Welfare.
Based on the recommendations of the said Committee, the Legal Draftsman has been instructed at the meeting of the Cabinet of Ministers held on 18.05.2026 to prepare the final bill on the animal welfare.
Wherefore, the Legal Draftsman has formulated the draft bill and the clearance of the Attorney General has been received in the connection.
Accordingly, the Cabinet of Ministers granted approval to the resolution furnished by the Minister of Agriculture, Livestock, Lands and Irrigation to publish the said draft bill in the
Government Gazette Notification and subsequently forward the same to the Parliament for its concurrence.
Under the legal provisions for elections in this country since 2004, it is mandatory for voters who come to mark their votes to verify their identity through a valid identity card, and it is also mandatory for all such voters to be marked with an appropriate mark using indelible ink. The dual purpose of these two functions is to prevent a voter from voting more than once in a single election.
It has been observed that having to follow two different
methods at the same time to achieve the same objective hinders the efficiency of the duties performed at the polling stations and also incurs additional costs to the government.
Therefore, it has been deemed appropriate to remove the legal provisions regarding the use of indelible ink and marking the voter with the appropriate mark from all election acts.
Accordingly, the development activities of the province, as well as national security, will benefit. Therefore, the Cabinet of Ministers has approved the resolution furnished by the
President to take necessary steps to remove the legal provisions
• Section 36 of the presidential Election Act, No 15 of 1981
• Section 38 of the Parliamentary Election Act, No 01 of 1981
• Section 36 of the Provincial Council Election Act, No 02 of 1988
• Section 53 A of the Local Government Elections Ordinance (262 Authority)
• Section 21 of the Referendum Act No 7 of 1981
News
Showers will occur in the Western, Sabaragamuwa and North-western provinces and in Galle, Matara, Kandy and Nuwara-Eliya districts
WEATHER FORECAST FOR 24 JUNE 2026
Issued at 05.30 a.m. on 24 June 2026 by the Department of Meteorology
Several spells of showers will occur in the Western, Sabaragamuwa and North-western provinces and in Galle, Matara, Kandy and Nuwara-Eliya districts. Showers or thundershowers may occur at a few places in the Uva province and in Ampara and Batticaloa districts after 2.00 p.m.
Fairly strong winds about (30-40) kmph can be expectedat times over the Western slopes of the central hills, the Northern, North-central, North-western and Southern provinces and in Trincomalee district.
The general public is kindly requested to take adequate precautions to minimize damage caused by temporary localized strong winds and lightning during thundershowers.
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Legal provisions on marking voters using indelible ink during elections removed
Showers will occur in the Western, Sabaragamuwa and North-western provinces and in Galle, Matara, Kandy and Nuwara-Eliya districts
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