The Hon. Ajith P. Perera

¶ 01 Thank you, Madam Deputy Chairperson.

¶ 02 The President clarified the basis for this allowance to schoolchildren: that it is tied to Aswesuma. The selection process for Aswesuma is flawed, hasty, irregular, and undertaken without adequate involvement of government officials, with outside parties participating and errors in the data. Therefore, basing this Rs. 6,000 school supply allowance solely on Aswesuma is unfair. While we accept that universal, across-the-board relief is not always necessary and targeting by income is appropriate, given the defects in the Aswesuma selection, this approach is problematic. The President said others will also receive it at official discretion—but whose discretion? Government officials and local politicians—again subjective. In such an important intervention, at a time of great hardship, the fair approach today is to grant this allowance to every schoolchild. Debating classroom-by-class whether Aswesuma is accurate has no practical value now. Therefore, we propose a universal grant to all schoolchildren.

¶ 03 Further, the President addressed Parliament today but did not disclose concrete outcomes from his visit to India. This is regrettable. As his first foreign visit after assuming office, and given its geopolitical significance, citizens have a right to know what was discussed and agreed. The joint statement with Prime Minister Modi refers to connectivity—physical, digital, and energy. We agree on the importance of connectivity but must consider implications:

¶ 04 - Physical connectivity such as a land bridge requires careful assessment: sovereignty, cultural identity, and job security. - Digital connectivity is necessary, but conditions must ensure win-win outcomes for both countries. - Energy connectivity raises critical concerns. For decades we have discussed the Indo–Sri Lanka power grid interconnection, which can be beneficial—drawing power from India when needed and exporting solar, wind, and offshore-generated power from our North. However, the proposed multi-product pipeline—covering LNG, heavy fuel, petrol, and diesel—to supply fuels to all our power plants entails massive sunk costs and conditions that could jeopardize our energy security by creating dependence on India. Nepal, Bangladesh, and Bhutan have faced analogous dilemmas. The joint statement’s clause 13 (or 14) mentions Sri Lanka and UAE in connection with the pipeline “for supply of affordable and reliable energy.” What is the UAE role? Which company represents the UAE? Who funds it? What are the terms? The Minister in charge and the President must clarify.

¶ 05 It appears the current administration is taking forward Ranil Wickremesinghe’s policy trajectory even further. If so, the onus is on them to prove otherwise.

¶ 06 Regarding a personal matter raised yesterday by the Minister of Justice and National Integration, Mr. Harshana Nanayakkara, I clarify my professional status: under Act No. 26 of 2023 on the conferment of the Senior Instructing Attorney Honorary Title, Section 4 defines two legal categories in Sri Lanka—Instructing Attorney and Counsel. I am a Counsel actively appearing in civil cases daily. That is the recognized designation under the Act. I also table material from Mr. Nanayakkara’s 2020 election campaign describing himself in relation to “Government Attorney” roles.