The Hon. Ananda Wijepala – Minister of Parliamentary Affairs
Minister Ananda Wijepala responded to claims by Hon. D.V. Chanaka regarding a Presidential Secretary’s circular issued on the 21st, stating that ministerial perks had not been increased but reduced. He said ministerial vehicles, fuel allocations, staff numbers, driver overtime, and advisers had all been curtailed, with advisers limited to two compared to over 50 under the former administration. He clarified that the only increase was to equalize State Ministers’ drivers’ overtime with Ministers’ drivers at 180 hours, and accused the previous speaker of misleading the House.
Verbatim record (translated)
Machine-translated from Sinhala / Tamil / English¶ 01 Hon. Deputy Chairperson, the previous speaker, Hon. D.V. Chanaka, made numerous misleading claims regarding a circular issued by the Presidential Secretary on the 21st. As Minister in charge of Parliamentary Affairs, I wish to clarify.
¶ 02 Under that circular, no perk, fuel allowance, or number of vehicles has been increased. In fact, numbers have been reduced. Previously, a Minister had three vehicles; now reduced to two. Previously, diesel allocation was 2,250 litres; now 900 litres—a reduction of 60 per cent. Petrol from 1,800 litres to 900 litres. All such benefits have been reduced.
¶ 03 Staff numbers have been reduced. Overtime for a Minister’s driver has been reduced from 200 hours to 180. A change was made to equalize OT for State Ministers’ drivers—previously 150 hours—now also 180, recognizing the heavy workload of lower‑grade staff. Apart from this parity for drivers, no perks were increased.
¶ 04 The Member claimed to have tabled two circulars—anyone can verify. Under the former administration of Ranil Wickremesinghe, over 50 advisers were employed; this circular limits advisers to two. There are many commendable reductions. It is wrong to mislead this House.
Provenance
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- Hansard, Thursday, 23 January 2025 ·No. 1738314169039521 ·English daily/uncorrected Hansard
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Cite as: The Hon. Ananda Wijepala – Minister of Parliamentary Affairs. 10th Parliament, Parliament of Sri Lanka. Hansard, 23 January 2025. No. 1738314169039521. Politick, https://staging.politick.io/lk/speeches/10570