The Hon. Sajith Premadasa - Leader of the Opposition

¶ 01 Hon. Speaker, I do not intend to obstruct the Minister’s statement. Under Standing Order 92(2)(a), I wish to draw attention to a serious matter. Budget allocations to Independent Commissions are made under Special Expenditure Units, not under any Ministry.

¶ 02 Under Standing Order 27(2), I raised a question regarding the National Commission for Women. This is an independent commission. However, the National Commission for Women has been gazetted under the Ministry of Women and Child Affairs. That is a serious error. Independent Commissions such as the Public Service, Judicial Service, National Police, Commission to Investigate Allegations of Bribery or Corruption, Monetary Board-related allocations, Human Rights Commission and the Election Commission receive funds under Special Expenditure Units.

¶ 03 Likewise, the National Commission for Women should be afforded the same. By gazetting an “independent” National Commission on Women under the Ministry, its independence is undermined. This is an injustice to the 52% of our population—women. The Minister can answer my earlier question, but this misstep must be corrected.