The Hon. (Dr.) Sandaruwan Madarasinghe

¶ 01 Hon. Presiding Member, thank you for the opportunity to speak on the two regulations under the Motor Traffic Act.

¶ 02 Regarding the reference to the assassination of Lasantha Wickrematunge: during 2015–2019, the Good Governance administration had ample space to investigate and arrest perpetrators; today, this Government is acting to bring those responsible to justice without political interference.

¶ 03 On transport: development must address both physical and human resources. In Hambantota District, we held 11 District Coordinating Committee meetings on transport and infrastructure; the two Opposition MPs of the district did not attend any. Despite their public comments, they did not participate in coordination forums.

¶ 04 Regarding roads in Hambantota in the past year, under the RDA we allocated: Rs. 400 million for maintenance, Rs. 354 million for improvements, Rs. 367 million for rural roads projects, Rs. 607 million for urgent road development, and Rs. 25 million for weak bridges. Under “Nagamu Purawara,” we are rehabilitating 13 long-neglected bridges left half-built by previous governments; one is underway, and three more will be completed within two weeks, moving swiftly to finish all 13.

¶ 05 Under the Southern Provincial Road Development Authority: Rs. 233 million for province-specific development, Rs. 67 million for maintenance, Rs. 79.2 million for other projects, and rural road programme works—95 percent of Rs. 171 million—are nearing completion. Through the District Secretary and Divisional Secretariats, Phase 1 completed 28 roads (over Rs. 74 million); Phase 2 is completing 46 roads (over Rs. 268 million).

¶ 06 Drug-related road accidents are a major factor. Reported totals: - 2023: 24,894 accidents; 2,231 fatal; 2,341 deaths; 1,193 drug-involved accidents. - 2024: 25,299 accidents; 2,403 fatal; 2,521 deaths; 759 drug-involved accidents. - 2025 (to November): 24,758 accidents; 2,128 fatal; 2,275 deaths; 670 drug-involved accidents.

¶ 07 Drug use is a principal, preventable cause. We are acting through regulations, enforcement and awareness. One initiative is a mobile medical bus of the National Transport Medical Institute with doctors, staff and equipment to screen drivers for drug use; this has been operational since November last year. Currently, we focus on drivers at the Mattakkuliya depot. We aim to advance both physical development and human resource development in transport. Thank you.