The Hon. (Prof.) A.H.M.H. Abayarathna - Minister of Public Administration, Provincial Councils and Local Government

Jathika Jana balawegaya· Puttalam· 18 June 2025 ·Oral question: Oral Questions: Questions 1–2 (School Projects, Ministers' Answers and Supplementaries) and Q.633/2025 (stood down), Q.636/2025 (Limestone Transport), Q.715/2025 (Kukuleganga Access Road), Q.724/2025 (Suwaseya Ambulance Service), Q.792/2025 (Bus Route Permits), Minuwangoda Shopping Complex, Tea Factories, and Social Media Provisions

Public FinanceCorruption & Governance ReformLand & Housing

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The Minister stated that the new complex has 93 stalls, but serious irregularities have arisen in their leasing, including 32 stalls being used by persons other than the original lessees. He said the Ministry will conduct a formal investigation into how such use was permitted, how money was collected, and whether unrecorded payments occurred, and will take action against those responsible. He also noted that 31 stalls remain unallocated and said past institutional failures and possible irregularities during local authority formations will be examined, with legal action to follow if warranted.

Verbatim record (translated)

Machine-translated from Sinhala / Tamil / English

¶ 01 Hon. Speaker, as the Member stated, there are 93 stalls in the new complex. However, it was constructed while the old complex was still usable, which the Opposition may wish to highlight. Serious issues have arisen in leasing these stalls.

¶ 02 In particular, 32 stalls have been allowed to be used by persons other than the original lessees. We have questions about how such persons were allowed to use them, how the monies were collected, and whether there were unrecorded collections. Therefore, as requested, the Ministry will conduct a formal investigation, and we will act against those who unlawfully allowed such use and those involved.

¶ 03 A further 31 stalls remain unallocated. Formal action at the institutional level has not been taken in the past. We also question why there was special interest by certain groups during local authority formations. We will carry out a formal inquiry at Ministry level, and if irregularities are found, legal action will be taken.

Provenance

Source: Hansard, Wednesday, 18 June 2025 ·No. 1751280704002343 ·English daily/uncorrected Hansard
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Cite as: The Hon. (Prof.) A.H.M.H. Abayarathna - Minister of Public Administration, Provincial Councils and Local Government. 10th Parliament, Parliament of Sri Lanka. Hansard, 18 June 2025. No. 1751280704002343. Politick, https://staging.politick.io/lk/speeches/6779