The Hon. T.K. Jayasundara

¶ 01 Hon. Deputy Chairperson, I am pleased to join this debate on a vital Bill and several instruments that give legislative effect to the President’s Budget proposals—approving the Social Security Contribution Levy (Amendment), Orders under the Strategic Development Projects Act, and several Rules under the Central Bank of Sri Lanka Act; also the Orders under the Anti-Doping Act.

¶ 02 Earlier today, the President addressed Parliament on a three-month short-term plan to meet the new challenges arising from global war conditions. We see the country moving forward steadily with sound management—aligning day-to-day realities. I represent a region where many are tea smallholders; there is also a large fishing community and low-income groups. In this three-month plan, we discussed how relief would reach them, especially as tea leaf output dips due to weather. The President presented measures people have awaited.

¶ 03 I also note: while we discuss prohibited stimulants in sport, we have an Opposition operating on a kind of “prohibited stimulant”—breaching norms, unfairly criticizing good work, and inflaming the public. They seem to want to seize power by any means. So this anti-doping story applies to the Opposition too!

¶ 04 We saw how they behaved—shouting, disrupting, projecting a distorted image via media. Now, like bombs falling back on their launchers, it rebounds on them. Their decibels have dropped; karmic results are upon them; internal conflicts are public. While the world faces war and economic crisis, and we face drought, people now talk about the Opposition’s own divisions. In the coming months, they will be too ashamed to face Parliament or the people.

¶ 05 Returning to today’s measures: we are rebuilding international confidence in Sri Lanka, moving from being seen as a haven of corruption to a country with fair governance working for the people and managing crises swiftly. The next phase is to drive economic growth through investment—domestic and foreign. We must pass the enabling laws. For too long, investors believed that to do business here you had to befriend a Minister and pay commissions. That violates even the free-market principles the Opposition recites. I recall Japanese investors leaving because they refused such payments. We are now institutionalizing rule-based processes where investors need not look to ministers’ faces. That is Parliament’s responsibility.

¶ 06 If there are technical gaps in the Bill, let us discuss and fix them. Not only MPs but experts and business leaders’ views should be considered to refine it. We are planning to strengthen infrastructure, services utility, production, agro-industry, education and technology, including ICT, to move to the next stage.

¶ 07 Meanwhile, the Opposition Leader laments about international confidence in him. International organizations observe the Opposition running to court queues. First they must become a responsible, credible Opposition. We invite them to do so. Grandstanding with “I will debate 24 hours” is not the task; speak with facts.

¶ 08 We remember how, during past crises, they printed Rs. 5,000 notes, spiked inflation, and plunged the nation deeper into debt. Today, we are stabilizing the economy fairly, safeguarding reserves, earning global trust, and even helping the world in this war context, while giving targeted relief and controlling inflation—for fishermen, small producers, exporters, tourism and others—taking the country forward. These Bills, Orders and Rules are of great importance. Thank you.