The Hon. M.A.M. Thahir
Hon. M.A.M. Thahir argued that digitalization should begin with practical access points such as schools, local authorities and Divisional Secretariats, ensuring smart classroom initiatives reach all students and the public is properly informed. He questioned how the previous year’s reported Rs. 3,000 million allocation for digitalization was spent and noted that local authority revenue functions such as stall rent, Stamp Duty and court fees remain undigitalized. He also raised concern that local authorities are spending large sums on private digital systems, calling for better coordination and accountability.
Verbatim record (translated)
Machine-translated from Sinhala / Tamil / English¶ 01 Please give me one minute!
¶ 02 Although many speak about digitalization, we must decide where to start. We have begun smart classrooms in schools, but we should reflect on how many students across Sri Lanka have actually been reached. There is no point saying “digital, digital” without starting where it matters. These programs should be delivered so that all students in schools are reached.
¶ 03 Regarding local authorities, their revenues include taxes such as stall rent, Stamp Duty, and certain court fees. Even these have not yet been digitalized, whether in Pradeshiya Sabhas, Urban Councils, or Municipal Councils.
¶ 04 Last year, I believe Rs. 3,000 million was allocated for digitalization. We do not know under which programs, to whom, and where this money reached. Therefore, facilities should be provided through schools, local authorities, and Divisional Secretariats to conduct awareness and education for the public.
¶ 05 Even today, local authorities hire private companies and purchase digital systems by paying in lakhs. Given this unfortunate situation of wasting money, it is very regretful for us to talk about digitalization. With that, I take my leave. Thank you.
Provenance
- Source
- Hansard, Wednesday, 26 November 2025 ·No. 22993 ·English daily/uncorrected Hansard
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- not yet extracted — page/column anchors are not in the current dataset; the source PDF is the citable location.
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/lk/speeches/22065
Cite as: The Hon. M.A.M. Thahir. 10th Parliament, Parliament of Sri Lanka. Hansard, 26 November 2025. No. 22993. Politick, https://staging.politick.io/lk/speeches/22065