Hon. Namal Rajapaksa, Attorney-at-Law

¶ 01 Hon. Deputy Speaker, the President delivered a lengthy Budget Speech. Government members call it “historic.” It is historic only in duration—four and a half hours. Examine the content: last year too you presented a Budget, and you have not even achieved 50% of it. Having failed to deliver half of last year’s Budget, you now table another long “historic” Budget.

¶ 02 Past Finance Ministers titled Budgets variously—the “Robin Hood” Budget, for example—taking from the rich to give to the poor. This Budget does the opposite: it takes from the poor to give to the rich; taxes the poor and grants reliefs to the wealthy. We are not against supporting business or attracting investors or protecting entrepreneurs.

¶ 03 The President says he “went and listened” and that we should not oppose land allocation. It was your party that opposed such measures for 76 years—your Hansard speeches can fill a book. When we built expressways, you opposed; today you promise to build them. If you had not opposed, we would have completed the network by now, and extended Marine Drive to Port City—first proposed by President Mahinda Rajapaksa in 2010. After 20 years, you realize its value.

¶ 04 Interjection (Hon. Dilip Wedaarachchi): You said it was to transport ambul kolla (pickled mango).

¶ 05 Hon. Namal Rajapaksa: Yes, that is what was said then—by people like Hon. Chanaka’s father and Hon. Wedaarachchi. But we do not harbour grudges; we say “build them.” When building Port City, you said Sigiriya would be torn down. We built it; Sigiriya still stands, and now you promote Sigiriya for tourism. If you had supported then, Port City would have been finished by now; instead, you even uprooted the foundation stone because it had the Chinese President’s and Mahinda Rajapaksa’s names.

¶ 06 On graduate jobs: now you threaten graduates to sit exams. In 2005, one of your core proposals to support Mahinda Rajapaksa’s victory was “jobs for all graduates.” If it was good then, how is it bad now? You now claim there will be a Rs. 1 trillion surplus in accounts. If so, why can’t you give relief to onion, potato, pumpkin, kurakkan, and paddy farmers? You boast of a trillion in surplus while farmers and fishers are in distress and receive no timely relief; hospitals face drug shortages; electricity bills cannot be eased; MSMEs cannot be protected. What is the use of the “trillion in accounts”?

¶ 07 You then lower the VAT/SSCL registration threshold from Rs. 60 million to Rs. 30 million annual turnover—so even those earning Rs. 1 lakh a day must register—squeezing the small. You say this raises Rs. 150 billion while sitting on a trillion surplus. You cannot find money for drugs, farmers, or fertilizer, but you can find money for 1,775 cabs? We laugh. You boasted you would travel by bus; now you import cabs. The Deputy Finance Minister said yesterday they are bought from last year’s savings; the President told Parliament they are in this Budget. At least coordinate your stories.

¶ 08 You claim USD 1.3 billion will be spent on vehicle imports, yielding Rs. 633 billion revenue in rupees. “Historic” policies: spend dollars to earn fewer rupees. One moment you say reserves are up to USD 6 billion; when we left in 2015 they were USD 8 billion. Some Ministers claim you “took power from the protest at a petrol queue”—fine; then deliver. You have been in power a year but still reciting the past. The President came promising to “send the IMF away,” but now you do not raise even a whimper at the IMF. Tell the IMF that blanket, regressive taxation hurts the economy and the poor.

¶ 09 You tout “new investors.” Name one who came after you took office. Interjection (Hon. S.M. Marikkar): One said Sinopec came under this Government. Hon. Namal Rajapaksa: You swap credit and claim it anew. Whether under the past or present, deliver results—protect people, keep promises, ensure security, and empower entrepreneurs.

¶ 10 Your policy makes the Government rich and the people poor. You increase estate workers’ wages by taxing the poor and then pay companies to pay wages. You collect taxes from every low-income person and transfer money to big businesses. What about the many smallholders—small tea growers? What about onions, potatoes, kurakkan, fisheries? Are you targeting only those useful for your future votes? If you want to raise wages, find a rational mechanism—grant tax relief to employers. Do not tax the poorest to fund payments to your chosen business interests. I am not even sure this passes legal muster.

¶ 11 You have a record of scaring away investors with litigation—Sampur, Norochcholai, New Fortress—every investor called a thief and sued. Now you are the Government—do not play Opposition games from the Treasury benches. We will remind you of what you forget.

¶ 12 The President recently mused on Russia and America; I say, do not seek to become a Hitler. Study what brought Hitler down—hubris—not chase after Russia or America.

¶ 13 On digitalization: I agree with the President—because he is now adopting proposals we made. We had the same speechwriter—mine in English, his now in Sinhala. Implement e-gates at the airport; the equipment is already installed from the time of State Minister Chanaka—switch them on; manual queues are back.

¶ 14 Before coming to power, you promised 6% of GDP for education. Today, you have cut even current allocations—perhaps because the PM is also the Education Minister? She asked for 6%; now you slash education.

¶ 15 To attract investors, think globally. Port City must compete not with Biyagama or Katunayake but with Dubai, Singapore, Shenzhen, and India’s GIFT City. Even the Maldives is planning a financial city. Make Sri Lanka first. We are not against giving land to investors—just deliver. Do not label every entrepreneur a thief and glare at them through suspicion.

¶ 16 Be practical. Last year you implemented less than 50% of the Budget. You claim a trillion surplus, yet no one knows where it is—hence new taxes. At least try to implement 50% of this Budget. Thank you.