The Hon. D.V. Chanaka

¶ 01 Hon. Chairman, first, I convey condolences to all who lost loved ones to floods and landslides, and gratitude to all rescuers—state officials, the tri-forces, volunteers and organizations.

¶ 02 As a party, from the beginning we intervened to feed people without waiting for Government channels. On our National Organizer Namal Rajapaksa’s direction, our organizers launched food distribution in places where people went two days without a meal. We do not paste party labels over donations; we simply help.

¶ 03 We regret some conduct by ruling party politicians. A Kaduwela independent MP reportedly took 200 food packs to distribute and was blocked by a local MP insisting distribution must go through him; complaints were filed but no action yet. People’s charity should not be politicized.

¶ 04 I also make a request: Government procurement of new double cabs for MPs—around Rs. 2.1 million per vehicle per annum and substantial insurance—should be cancelled and funds diverted to urgently procure essential medicines. Parliament’s Research Division confirms about 60 medicines were already out of stock even before the disaster. I will submit this in writing to the Speaker and request that my vehicle allocation be transferred to Health instead.

¶ 05 Under Namal Rajapaksa’s “Aadara” programme, we will begin distributing schoolbooks tomorrow to 1,500 children in Hambantota from flood-affected areas, and then islandwide.

¶ 06 Our party refrained from politics for a week—no criticism—supporting Government relief quietly. We will not oppose the Supplementary Estimate; indeed, for the first time we will not vote against this Budget. But that does not mean we support the Government; the Budget must be revised to reflect disaster needs—housing, in particular, is severely underfunded. We sought a two-day debate on the disaster; it was not granted, as urgency was oddly reserved for approving certain ministry heads and, apparently, vehicle tenders.

¶ 07 Could this disaster’s impact have been reduced? Yes. The Chief Government Organizer said they only realized on the 25th; yet the Met Department briefed on the 11th, 22nd, 23rd, 24th and 25th. Why no early action? On reservoir operations—like Kotmale—automatic gate openings occurred late; why were controlled pre-releases not done? The Water Management Committee is no stranger to COPE. Local officials should have convened urgent committees and public announcements before gate operations. That did not happen.

¶ 08 After Easter 2019, a former President was fined Rs. 100 million and senior officials faced trials. This calamity, too, deserves accountability. After relief, appoint an independent committee to inquire. Thank you.