The Hon. Mujibur Rahman
Hon. Mujibur Rahman criticized the Government’s approach to consultation, saying it relied on supportive committees rather than farmer assemblies that had protested in Colombo. He argued that rice policy decisions favoured mill owners over farmers, citing meetings with millers and an increase of Rs. 10 that he said benefited them while farmers received Rs. 120 per kilo. He also questioned the Government’s claim that there were no cronies, alleging that a 50 MW wind power tender was granted with Cabinet approval despite procurement and appeal rejections to a person who had supported the campaign.
Verbatim record (translated)
Machine-translated from Sinhala / Tamil / English¶ 01 You asked the committees in Pelawatte—those who support you and give you voice-cuts. That is not democracy. We are talking about the farmer assemblies who came to Colombo wearing their loincloths in protest. You did not ask them.
¶ 02 You also convened rice mill owners five times. The President got angry, even banged the table, and increased by Rs. 10. We thought when he got angry, the number would go down; instead, it went up, and he gave them Rs. 10 more. Now Dudley is silent and farmers are crying. Your “economic democracy” gave Rs. 120 per kilo to farmers, but Dudley got Rs. 10 more. So Dudley is quiet; farmers are weeping. That is Minister Lal Kantha’s “economic democracy.”
¶ 03 You also said there are no cronies. A 50 MW wind power tender was rejected by the Procurement Committee and the appeal was also rejected. With both rejected, Cabinet approval was obtained and it was given—was it not to a crony? He is a crony who spent for your campaign.
Provenance
- Source
- Hansard, Tuesday, 25 February 2025 ·No. 1741258607035810 ·English daily/uncorrected Hansard
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Cite as: The Hon. Mujibur Rahman. 10th Parliament, Parliament of Sri Lanka. Hansard, 25 February 2025. No. 1741258607035810. Politick, https://staging.politick.io/lk/speeches/26640