Hon. Asitha Niroshana Egoda Vithana

¶ 01 Hon. Deputy Chairperson, thank you for the opportunity to comment on the COPE Report presented today by our Chair, Hon. (Dr.) Nishantha Samaraweera, concerning several institutions: the National Medicines Regulatory Authority (NMRA), National Gem and Jewellery Authority, Sri Jayewardenepura General Hospital Board, and Airport and Aviation Services (Sri Lanka) (Pvt.) Ltd.

¶ 02 Airport and Aviation embarked on a major project to upgrade Katunayake International Airport to increase passenger capacity from 6 to 12 million with a JICA loan. On 28 March 2012, an agreement was signed with the JAC/NK consultancy JV for LKR 3,445 million (Rs. 3.445 billion) for consultancy. After around four years (2012–2016), the plan was changed to increase capacity to 15 million, incurring an additional Rs. 5,196 million for re-designs, and in 2023 another amendment costing Rs. 8,080 million. Thus, over ten years, Rs. 16,728 million (Rs. 16.728 billion) was spent on designs alone. Those who now criticize sat in government over that decade planning but not completing the project, causing massive loss of public funds. This has been the pattern of those so-called “development” leaders.

¶ 03 Regarding the NMRA, tasked with safeguarding the lives of over 22 million citizens by ensuring safe, quality medicines, it was reduced to a tragedy. Normally, registering, testing, approving and importing a medicine takes around nine months. To address special needs, there was a Waiver of Registration (WoR) pathway with a special committee. In 2022, under then President Ranil Wickremesinghe and Health Minister Keheliya Rambukwella, that was changed to a “special pathway” via a named private intermediary to bring medicines within 45 days, citing shortages of drugs and medical devices. The result was substandard and counterfeit medicines entering the country, causing deaths — including of pregnant mothers — and blindness: the NMRA accepted that 27 persons, including schoolchildren, suffered loss of vision.

¶ 04 Those who presided over that corrupt history now sit in the Opposition and question us, having attempted to orchestrate strikes — railways, post, health, and nearly electricity — to weaken the Government. The people rejected those efforts.

¶ 05 An Opposition MP cited Nandana Gunathilaka’s allegations against the Bribery Commission leadership. We need not answer those who have discredited their public and private lives and were rejected by the people.

¶ 06 Another Opposition Member claimed we are seeking one-party communist rule. If they continue their ineffective tactics against the Government, it is the people who will create a single-party rule at the next election, not us.