The Hon. Aravinda Senarath - Deputy Minister of Land and Irrigation

¶ 01 Hon. Presiding Member, today we are debating the decisions taken to strengthen the Commission to Investigate Allegations of Bribery or Corruption (CIABOC).

¶ 02 When we talk about CIABOC, some groups become agitated, make various criticisms and statements. There is a group in this country that fears a strong CIABOC because over the past two or three decades they ruined the country and misused public funds; cases are now being filed against many of them, both outside and inside. Therefore, many in the Opposition are speaking against strengthening CIABOC. But as the Government, we are providing all facilities to strengthen the Commission—improving salaries, allowances and the facilities necessary for its officers—because our economy collapsed due to theft, waste, fraud and corruption. The whole world knows this. At one point, our country became bankrupt due to shortsighted actions of past rulers and because massive public wealth was treated like personal property for private luxury.

¶ 03 Though the Opposition is disturbed by this, we will strengthen and ensure the independence of CIABOC. For the first time in Sri Lanka’s history, institutions like this are being made independent—without looking at Government or Opposition, or status—creating an environment where the law can be applied to anyone. That is why we are holding this debate.

¶ 04 Some say, “Work together; unite.” Looking at some of those making that call, one wonders whether they mean “unite to puppeteer the snakes,” because that is what they did before. We will not respond to that. As a Government, we understand the current crisis and are engaging with citizens.

¶ 05 Throughout today the Opposition tried to say the Government failed to manage this national and global crisis. The people understand what past governments faced over two decades. However, since 2025 we have managed both internal and external misfortunes well. The “Ditcha” cyclone struck; we managed that disaster very well. Now there is a global war-like situation; we are making plans to face it too. This is a global crisis.

¶ 06 Oil is limited to a few supplying countries; all economies are tied to fuel, and supply disruptions affect the whole world. Therefore, claiming the Government has failed is misleading the public. The people trust this Government. The Opposition tries to say we must build public confidence, but we say the people had confidence in 2024, 2025, and 2026. Citizens—whether they voted or not—place full trust in the National People’s Power Government. We have no issue with public confidence. People are ready to make sacrifices. We invite the Opposition to be ready too, rather than creating chaos at petrol sheds or gas queues with “voice cuts.” Move to a mature, expert politics.

¶ 07 We will not make business out of crises. Some made business from the COVID pandemic; they profited selling antigen kits and expensive hotel rooms. Those same people now lecture us. We call that “witchcraft preaching.” Not us. As a Government, we are planning, making sacrifices and managing.

¶ 08 Farmers face huge problems including fuel. This morning, with the Minister and fertilizer companies and officials, we discussed and activated plans. During harvest, fuel shortages arose; we’ve put in place a systematic arrangement and will further improve provisions in coming days.

¶ 09 In this war context, some racketeers are trying to hike urea prices and create a black market. Today we decided with fertilizer companies that private sector fertilizer firms will sell a 50 kg bag of urea at Rs. 9,500 and the State fertilizer company at Rs. 9,000. This is what a Government does. Under past regimes that ran everything as a business, a bag of urea shot up to Rs. 45,000 after such crises. We are managing this now. While black markets may arise, we are identifying and providing solutions.

¶ 10 The Opposition talked about foreign relations, claiming they are weak. They said that even before the 2024 Presidential Election. But citizens can see that under the National People’s Power Government, foreign relations are stronger than at any other time—Russia, China, Vietnam, India, Japan, the United States and others are engaging constructively and supporting our forward journey. That is the responsibility of a Government. We are studying every sector and resolving issues.

¶ 11 We must lift the country. We did not come to power amidst crisis to fail the country. Ours is a political movement that has studied both domestic and international crises. We are now taking strong decisions to lift the country. The Opposition has proven that it failed to solve even simple issues during its time. In less than two years, we have managed highly complex crises well because we decide collectively, from the lowest officer upwards, engaging with technical knowledge to find solutions.

¶ 12 On transport, education, petroleum, defense, highways, agriculture and tourism, we are working around the clock, with ministers, MPs and officials holding lengthy discussions. That is what a Government is—not living off a crisis or enriching one’s lineage from it, but preparing a program to overcome and end it victoriously, providing political leadership and policy. We are doing so. Therefore, claims that we have no preparedness are false. We have prepared and discussed everything. Of course, problems can arise; ours was not a country with a good system. We are now building one.

¶ 13 The QR system may be criticized, but currently around 35,000–40,000 registrations per hour are being made. There may be issues, but we will finalize arrangements quickly and provide access to the people. We planned this with the relevant institutions. We have understood the situation and prepared solutions.

¶ 14 Let me answer a few Opposition points. They called this a puppet Government. Who said it? The best puppet in this Parliament said that—those who worked as “propaganda arms,” who tried to run governments with strings, are now calling us puppets. We are a Government elected by the people, which understands their aspirations, and we have sacrificed our most precious things to realize them. We are a Government with strong international relations, capable of restoring dignity and pride to the country through coherent policy. Those who call us puppets were the ones who ran the country like puppets. We have stopped that, and we are taking Sri Lanka forward strongly. Thank you for the opportunity.