The Hon. Chamara Sampath Dasanayake

¶ 01 Hon. Chair, when debating the Energy Ministry’s Head today, first, I reiterate a query I raised last Friday: how did 11 persons travel to three countries for Rs. 1.8 million? The Prime Minister’s speech did not specify who was ticketed by whom. If clarified, we would not question. Even if the President spends Rs. 1.8 billion to travel, that is not the issue; the issue is the contradictory information given about him that has led the public to question how 11 people travelled for Rs. 1.8 million.

¶ 02 Next, to the Minister: you dismissed concerns lightly, even joking about the “monkey” incident. The entire country and the world are watching; ministers must answer responsibly. On 18th, the CEB issued a media release implying it was not due to a monkey. I table that statement.

¶ 03 There has been a six-month-known Sunday load issue: on Sundays, industrial load drops, hydro and Norochcholai output plus solar surge cause imbalances. LECO, SLSEA, and CEB have discussed this for months, yet no fix. Offer incentives for factories to operate on Sundays or adjust hydro dispatch to balance load.

¶ 04 There are 159 Government MPs; when incidents occur, all 225 face the heat. The CEB Chairman has conflicts of interest: he is linked to Resource Management Associates (Pvt.) Ltd., a consultancy that advises CEB and others, from which professional fees are earned. While heading CEB, his firm (with his spouse on the board) advises on LNG and other matters. Meanwhile, many solar PPAs remain unsigned and rooftop/solar additions are throttled. I table documents including a complaint to the Commission to Investigate Allegations of Bribery or Corruption on this matter, the CEB media statement on the outage, and material on Resource Management Associates.

¶ 05 Solar has contributed immensely—last year about 600 MW came from solar, roughly 10% share. Yet tariff cuts (from Rs. 47 to about Rs. 27) and payment delays, plus banks withholding loans, have dampened investor appetite.

¶ 06 We must avoid repeating 2022-style missteps. Rash public statements about fuel scarcity triggered panic buying then; today some petrol sheds face closure due to new policies that hurt rural outlets. Policy must be made with dialogue and fairness—do not offload every issue to the President. Ministers and chairmen must act responsibly and not compel the President to micromanage.

¶ 07 Thank you.