Saturday Jan 24, 2026
Saturday Jan 24, 2026
Saturday, 24 January 2026 05:11 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}
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| MP Dr. Harsha de Silva |
Committee on Public Finance (CoPF) Chairman MP Dr. Harsha de Silva in Parliament this week stressed the need for a fundamental change in the country’s financial management.
He strongly criticised the Government’s current spending patterns for failing to protect the vulnerable and neglecting the technological needs of future generations.
Dr. de Silva strongly criticised the wasteful spending in the Samurdhi Department. Although Rs. 27 billion was allocated for the Department in the 2025 Budget, Rs. 22 billion of it was spent on salaries of administrative officers. As a result, he revealed that only Rs. 5 billion actually reached the poor. “This is an inefficient system,” he said, stressing the need to change the office structure so that Government funds reach the people.
He also referred to the “Aswesuma” scheme. Citing a study by Professor Sirimal Abeyratne and Dr. H.M. Gunathilake, he said that 58% of eligible families are still excluded from the scheme, while many ineligible ones are included. To rectify this, he said that a scientifically based pilot study involving 3,000 families should be immediately conducted and the scheme should be extended until 2027 only after receiving its results.
The CoPF Chairman lamented the current state of affairs in the education sector. “The Government is spending a lot of money on construction projects that could be done by the private sector. But no one is paying attention to the fact that the public education monitoring and teaching departments are in a dire state,” he said. He revealed that currently more than 2,500 schools lack even basic smart boards and digital tools.
He stressed that the Government’s primary goal should be the ‘public good’ and that the focus should be on providing English and artificial intelligence (AI) training to teachers. “Poverty today is not just a lack of income; real poverty is lack of access to quality education and health services,” he noted. He urged all political parties to support the “five pillars” of education transformation and the Government to take bold decisions to modernise curricula and teacher training.
Dr. de Silva warned that Sri Lanka cannot be freed from poverty without a transparent audit process and the appointment of an independent auditor. “Wealth programs should not be used as political tools. They should become a true social safety net, operating under data and science-based monitoring,” he asserted.
