The Hon. Rauff Hakeem, Attorney-at-Law

¶ 01 [11.10 a.m.]

¶ 02 Hon. Deputy Speaker, today the Government side began this debate with a back-bench Member. He presented these Regulations very well and deserves praise. However, I must draw your attention to our traditions. For such important motions, the relevant Minister or Deputy Minister—or the Leader of the House—should present them. Today, our senior Member Hon. Sunil Handunnetti is here; the Executive should be represented by someone responsible. Assigning this to a back-bencher, though he did it well, deprives the Opposition of the ability to question and obtain accountable answers.

¶ 03 We expect seniors like Hon. Sunil Handunnetti to convey this to the Government. The Deputy Minister Bharshana Sooriyaperuma is here representing the Finance Ministry. He should have made the opening. Responsibility matters so we can seek clarifications.

¶ 04 Internationally, there is now a clearer view of this Government. Recently the IMF set out requirements on assessing corruption vulnerabilities. People gave this Government a mandate to address this; we must protect that trust. The World Bank has extended a USD 1 billion facility after a long time, on the expectation that funds will be used without corruption. We welcome this. But I must draw attention today to the Regulations under the Imports and Exports (Control) Act placed for approval, and to a report in The Morning.

¶ 05 It states, I quote:

¶ 06 “Indian salt shipment arrives

¶ 07 A shipment of salt imported from India was set to arrive in Sri Lanka yesterday (21) night, as part of efforts to address the current salt shortage in the country, the Minister of Trade, Commerce and Food Security Wasantha Samarasinghe said.

¶ 08 Samarasinghe confirmed that the consignment includes a total of 3,050 metric tonnes (MT) of salt. Of this, 250 MT have been imported by the private sector, while the remaining 2,800 MT were brought in by the State-run National Salt Company.”

¶ 09 This is where the cat jumps out of the bag. The State entity first prepares the import order from India, and only thereafter is the private sector allowed to import. Now there is a salt mafia in this country. Who in Government is encouraging this mafia? We must investigate. The public gave this Government a mandate precisely against such practices, yet a salt mafia is emerging. The Hon. Mujibur Rahuman recently criticized the salt mafia. In Puttalam, Government and private sector both can produce salt; some private companies’ families hold shares and sit on boards.

¶ 10 Puttalam produces nearly half the nation’s salt, yet its salt is absent in the market. Is someone engineering this? Is Government encouraging the mafia? The retail price per packet has gone to Rs. 350; from Rs. 130 to Rs. 350. With imports, it could be sold at Rs. 150–200. Instead, a heavy burden is placed on the people, behind which a mafia seems to operate.

¶ 11 The Government must bear responsibility for allowing this. Since December, Puttalam producers asked to allow imports, but Government delayed—just as with rice: when shortages arose, they waited, then allowed imports via a licensing system. They said they would abolish licensing and the licence-raj; good. Even with open import now, these issues persist; we must find out why.

¶ 12 Sri Lanka needs about 200,000 MT of salt annually; Puttalam produces about 100,000 MT. Weather can affect output—granted—but no State body steps in early, monitors, advises producers and stakeholders. Seniors must focus on this and deploy early solutions. Because of inaction, a great shortage has arisen. This is tragic for an island nation. The reason is the mafia foreseeing and gaming the situation.