Opposition missed golden opportunity: State Minister
Yahapalana regime had defaulted payments to contractors who had undertaken various development projects
The Opposition missed out a golden opportunity to amend its past mistakes, by disrupting the government’s attempt to increase the credit limit of the government to obtain Cabinet approval for a further Rs. 757 billion to settle unpaid bills of Yahapalana regime, Finance, Economy and Policy Development, State Minister Shehan Semasinghe said.
Minister Semasinghe added that the Yahapalana regime had defaulted payments to contractors who had undertaken various development projects to the tune of Rs. 156 billion and another Rs. 211 billion spent sans Treasury allocation in 2019 alone.
“All these projects had been launched targeting the elections without determining where the money would come from. As a result of the failure to make payments to contractors for the work done, they were in a dire strait, unable to pay wages to workers, sub contractors and material and machinery suppliers. The outstanding payments alone stood at Rs. 211 billion. Besides, if the payments due to contractors are delayed further, the workers will not have a rupee to enjoy their New Year celebrations. That is why we presented the Appropriation Bill to Parliament,” Minister Semasinghe stressed.
The reason for the government’s decision to introduce an amendment to the Appropriation Bill to raise the credit limit to obtain Rs. 367 billion, Minister Semasinghe said.”the Health Ministry was in default to pay Rs. 26 billion to purchase essential drugs and settle unpaid bills to drug suppliers, Rs. 46 billion for interest payment subsidy for senior citizens, Rs. 24 billion for fertiliser subsidy, Rs. six billion for Treasury subsidy for various statutory boards, Rs. 19 billion for highway contractors, Rs. seven billion for urban development contractors, Rs. three billion for school development contractors Rs. four billion for Gamperaliya programme, Northern Development and resettlement, Rs. four billion for Provincial Councils and Local government Ministry, Rs. two billion for Higher Education Ministry and Rs. seven billion for Irrigation and Rural Development Ministry contractors,” he said.
“There is no financial crisis at all in the country. The government would settle all the unpaid bills after we form our own government after Parliamentary polls in late April,” Minister Semasinghe noted.