The Hon. (Dr.) Ramanathan Archchuna
Dr. Ramanathan Archchuna supported the Adjournment Motion concerning the cessation of issuing driving licences to foreign tourists, noting the importance of tourism income, particularly from the European Union. He then raised allegations of corruption in the Agriculture Sector Modernization Project, citing World Bank and EU funding from 2019 to 2025 and claiming that Rs. 20 million of EU funds had been spent on painting a rented building, naming individuals he said were connected to the matter.
Verbatim record (translated)
Machine-translated from Sinhala / Tamil / English¶ 01 Hon. Presiding Member, I thank Hon. Chamara Sampath Dasanayake for bringing this Adjournment Motion on the termination of issuing driving licences to foreign tourists. The income our country earns from tourism is very important, mostly from the European Union. I was in Europe during the past month.
¶ 02 I must raise a key point. From 2019 to 2025, the World Bank allocated USD 58.63 million and the European Union USD 28 million to the Agriculture Sector Modernization Project (ASMP). EU funds were utilized across 16 districts, including the Northern Province. I present evidence of corruption therein. One building was rented for a year and Rs. 20 million spent just to paint it. Here is the evidence, naming a person Vijithan and Dr. Rohan Wijekoon, the Project Director. Renting a building and spending Rs. 20 million only for paint—this is EU money!
Provenance
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- Hansard, Tuesday, 11 November 2025 ·No. 22786 ·English daily/uncorrected Hansard
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Cite as: The Hon. (Dr.) Ramanathan Archchuna. 10th Parliament, Parliament of Sri Lanka. Hansard, 11 November 2025. No. 22786. Politick, https://staging.politick.io/lk/speeches/12011