The Hon. (Dr.) (Ms.) Kaushalya Ariyarathne
Hon. (Dr.) (Ms.) Kaushalya Ariyarathne said the Government is addressing complications inherited from previous administrations while beginning to implement its policies. She cited cost-cutting and administrative measures at the Prime Minister’s Office, including reducing the monthly fuel bill, removing a private medical facility, and returning bulletproof vehicles and ambulances. She criticized Opposition members for not acknowledging these steps and concluded by arguing that the Government would continue its programme despite criticism.
Verbatim record (translated)
Machine-translated from Sinhala / Tamil / English¶ 01 Thank you, Hon. Deputy Chairperson.
¶ 02 It is to resolve such issues that we are now engaged. The President stated that in the first two months, much time had to be spent resolving complications created by past governments. While resolving those, we are also moving to implement our policies.
¶ 03 This morning, the Hon. Prime Minister said her office’s monthly fuel bill of Rs. 3.5 million has been reduced to Rs. 1 million. I recall that a private medical facility was maintained within the Prime Minister’s Office—those have been removed. Bulletproof vehicles were returned; ambulances were returned. It is disappointing that some of our colleagues in the Opposition fail to recognize these measures.
¶ 04 To conclude, let me quote a line from Lenin’s Selected Works, Vol. 12, page 608:
¶ 05 “When the great old trees are felled, every flying twig makes the pampered lapdogs of the bourgeoisie howl; but if the poor are not frightened by the elephant, why fear the lapdogs? They may bark; we continue our journey.”
¶ 06 Thank you, Hon. Deputy Chairperson.
Provenance
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- Hansard, Thursday, 23 January 2025 ·No. 1738314169039521 ·English daily/uncorrected Hansard
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Cite as: The Hon. (Dr.) (Ms.) Kaushalya Ariyarathne. 10th Parliament, Parliament of Sri Lanka. Hansard, 23 January 2025. No. 1738314169039521. Politick, https://staging.politick.io/lk/speeches/10553