2023-06-09
News Categories : Committee News
No final decision will be taken about Provincial Councils and Local Government delimitation without consulting with the Members of Parliament.
Even if the number of provincial council members will be reduced, injustice will not be allowed to any part of the population.
- Hon. Dinesh Gunawardena affirms
Hon. Dinesh Gunawardena, Minister of Public Administration, Home Affairs, Provincial Councils and Local Government affirmed that even if the number of provincial council members will be reduced, injustice will not be allowed to any part of the population and that no final decision will be taken about Provincial Councils and Local Government delimitation without consulting with the Members of Parliament. He said that this should be done with a fair representation of youth and women.
The Chairman to the Ministerial Consultative Committee on Public Administration, Home Affairs, Provincial Councils & Local Government stated the aforesaid on 07.06.2023. Members of Parliament, Government officials and State Ministers including State Minister of Provincial Councils and Local Government Hon. Janaka Wakkumbura, State Minister of Home Affairs Hon. Ashoka Priyantha were present at this Committee meeting held.
Attention was drawn to the difficulties faced by public servants who submitted nominations for the 2023 local government elections due to the delay in the elections. It was also discussed that even though a circular has been issued that salaries should be paid to them, the work is not done properly in some institutions. Furthermore, according to the situation, these employees have to face great difficulties during the assignment of temporary placements. State Minister Hon. Janaka Wakkumbura said that a circular has been issued to the nearest institution regarding the process of attachment. The Prime Minister instructed to take necessary steps in this regard immediately.
A request was also made by the Members of Parliament to bring the necessary legal amendment to change this situation. If not, a proposal to pass a resolution to cancel the nomination by way of the Parliament was also presented here.
The Committee also paid attention to the activities of the draft Bill prepared to remove the existing obstacles for the field officers to request votes in their electorate. Accordingly, the Bill has been forwarded to the Attorney General for consultation, the officials said. Accordingly, the Prime Minister instructed the officials to take the necessary steps and complete the work pertaining to the Bill.
The members pointed out the need to intervene to carry out the necessary activities for the public as the local government bodies are currently controlled by the local government commissioners. That measures will be taken to provide instructions to the provincial governors to provide the necessary facilities to expedite the work of solving public problems through the district coordination committee chairpersons stated that measures will be taken to provide instructions to the provincial governors to provide the necessary facilities to expedite the work of solving public problems through the district coordination committee chairpersons.
Attention was also drawn to the fact that provincial government officials were not given proper transfers. Accordingly, the Prime Minister also emphasized that the transfers of all administrative officers including divisional secretaries should be done properly. Accordingly, the Prime Minister gave instructions to the officials to take immediate action for the said.
The matters pertaining to that of which the former regional secretary Tissamaharama had told the media was also taken into discussion. It was revealed that an immediate report was called in this regard and a letter was also received stating that a voluntary transfer was requested for personal reasons. The Secretary to the Ministry said that it is not reasonable to issue such a statement and an investigation will be carried out in this regard.
The attention of the Minister was also drawn to the activities of making local councils including Wayangoda local council into municipal councils. It was also revealed that there are 85 such requests. Accordingly, the Prime Minister gave necessary instructions to speed up the work.
The Leader of the Opposition drew the attention of the Committee towards the confirmation of those who have not been given the respective permanent appointments due to the deficiencies in the process in the program of giving appointments to qualified graduates under the 2020 Graduate Trainee Program. The officials pointed out that the review committee headed by the Prime Minister's Secretary has recommended that a policy decision should be taken. Accordingly, the Prime Minister gave necessary instructions to the officials to speed up the work.
Prime Minister Hon. Dinesh Gunawardena said that the necessary measures will be taken to employ nearly 30,000 multi-purpose department employees assigned to government institutions, and their salaries will also be increased.
Furthermore, the committee emphasized the need to work to confirm the people who have worked in the local government institutions for many years. State Minister Hon. Janaka Wakkumbura said that there are currently 9700 such employees and they are being prioritized.
2026-07-22
The draft Terms of Reference (ToR) prepared for the Parliamentary Caucus for Open Parliament Initiative was approved recently at a meeting held in Parliament with the participation of Parliament's development partner organizations.The approval was granted during a meeting of the Caucus chaired by its Co-Chair, Hon. Member of Parliament Shanakkiyan Rajaputhiran Rasamanickam.The draft Terms of Reference was developed based on proposals and recommendations received during a workshop organized by the Caucus in recent months to gather stakeholder input for its preparation.The meeting also agreed that, following the approval of the Terms of Reference, the document would be submitted to Hon. President, and that a discussion would be held with the President on behalf of the Caucus.
2026-07-22
The Sub-Committee appointed by the Committee on Public Enterprises (COPE) focused its attention on the methodology, implementation timeline and coordination arrangements relating to the research study proposed for the restructuring of the Sri Lanka Institute of Advanced Technological Education (SLIATE), when it met recently, at Parliament under the Chairmanship of Hon. Member of Parliament Ruwan Mapalagama.During the meeting, discussions were held on the establishment of the proposed Institutional Operations Committee and a six-member Coordination Team to facilitate the implementation of the research. Attention was also focused on the proposed Mixed-Methods Design, the preparation of questionnaires and the data collection process.The Sub-Committee further reviewed the progress of obtaining public views on the restructuring of SLIATE. Matters relating to obtaining the contribution of the Human Resources and Management Information Systems (MIS) divisions for the research, the preparation of the research implementation timeline through a Gantt Chart, and the stakeholder consultations to be held with representatives of the industry sector were also considered.The programme to obtain the views of stakeholders, including Chambers of Commerce, industry associations and professional bodies, as well as the conduct of field visits to selected SLIATE institutions across the country, was also discussed.The Sub-Committee decided to proceed with the future activities of the research in accordance with the agreed timeline and to present the relevant progress reports at its next meeting.Hon. Member of Parliament Lieutenant Commander (Retired) Prageeth Madhuranga also attended the meeting.
2026-07-22
The Committee on Public Enterprises (COPE) focused its attention on referring the matters revealed in relation to land misuse, financial irregularities and administrative deficiencies at the National Housing Development Authority (NHDA) to the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) and the Commission to Investigate Allegations of Bribery or Corruption (CIABOC) for a formal investigation.The matter was taken up when the Committee met recently at Parliament under the Chairmanship of Hon. Member of Parliament (Dr.) Nishantha Samaraweera to continue its examination of the Auditor General's Reports for the years 2022 and 2023 and to consider the remaining matters relating to the current performance of the National Housing Development Authority.During the meeting, lengthy discussions were held regarding the leasing of valuable NHDA-owned lands located at Maligawatta, Elvitigala Mawatha and Rangirigama, Dambulla to external parties at low nominal values without Cabinet approval, the use of such lands for purposes contrary to the conditions stipulated in the relevant agreements, and the failure to adequately safeguard the Authority's assets.The Committee observed that many of these transactions had been carried out in contravention of the objectives of the National Housing Development Authority and the relevant legal provisions. Accordingly, the Committee recommended that comprehensive reports on the identified irregularities be referred to the Criminal Investigation Department and the Commission to Investigate Allegations of Bribery or Corruption for the institution of appropriate legal action.The Committee also instructed the officials to expedite internal audit investigations into these matters, identify the officers responsible and initiate disciplinary action against them. Furthermore, the Committee recommended that the necessary measures be taken to strengthen asset management and internal control systems in order to prevent the recurrence of such irregularities in the future.The meeting was attended by Hon. Members of Parliament Attorney-at-Law Dayasiri Jayasekara, S.M. Marikkar, Attorney-at-Law Sujeewa Senasinghe, Mujibur Rahman, Chaminda Wijesiri, Dr. S. Sri Bavanandarajah, Sunil Rajapaksha, Thilina Samarakoon, Chandima Hettiarachchi, Asitha Niroshana Egodavithana, Ruwan Mapalagama, Jagath Manuwarna, Dinesh Hemantha, M.K.M. Aslam and Sudath Balagalla.
2026-07-21
Discussions focus on strengthening disability-inclusive legislation and policy implementationThe Parliamentary Caucus for Persons with Disabilities held discussions with the United Nations Resident Coordinator and representatives of several United Nations agencies at Parliament with a view to strengthening cooperation in promoting the rights of persons with disabilities and advancing disability-inclusive legislation and policies in Sri Lanka.The meeting was held in Parliament under the Chairmanship of the Chair of the Parliamentary Caucus for Persons with Disabilities, Hon. Member of Parliament Sugath Wasantha de Silva recently.Addressing the meeting, the United Nations Resident Coordinator, Mr. Marc-André Franche, commended the Parliament for establishing the Parliamentary Caucus for Persons with Disabilities and emphasized the importance of treating disability inclusion as a national priority across all sectors. He reaffirmed the commitment of the United Nations to provide technical expertise and institutional support in areas including legislative reforms, accessibility, inclusive education, employment, community-based rehabilitation and strengthening national coordination.The UNICEF Representative, Ms. Begoña Arellano, highlighted the need to safeguard the rights of children with disabilities, particularly in relation to health, nutrition and education, while emphasizing the important oversight role of Parliament in ensuring the effective implementation of disability-inclusive policies.Representatives of UNFPA, UNDP, ILO and UN Volunteers also briefed the Caucus on ongoing initiatives relating to youth, education, disability data collection, employment opportunities and social inclusion.During the meeting, the Minister of Rural Development, Social Security and Community Empowerment, Hon. (Dr.) Upali Pannilage, informed the Caucus that the proposed Rights of Persons with Disabilities Bill and the Sign Language Bill are currently with the Attorney General's Department and are expected to be presented to Parliament on September 2026. He further stated that measures are underway to improve accessibility in public institutions, expand employment opportunities, introduce educational grants for university students with disabilities and establish ten day-care centres for children with disabilities within this year.The Caucus also discussed future initiatives, including the preparation of disability-inclusive budget proposals by Government Ministries, the finalisation of a national disability database and the conduct of a sensitisation programme for journalists to promote a rights-based approach to disability related reporting.The meeting concluded with the Chair, Hon. Sugath Wasantha de Silva, reiterating the Caucus's core theme, "An unhindered social life," and calling for continued, unified collaboration to make an inclusive society a reality.The meeting was attended by the Deputy Co-Chairs of the Caucus, Hon. Gayantha Karunathilleka, and Hon. (Dr.) Pathmanathan Sathiyalingam, the Minister of Rural Development, Social Security and Community Empowerment, Hon. (Dr.) Upali Pannilage, Members of Parliament and representatives of the United Nations Resident Coordinator's Office, UNFPA, UNICEF, UNDP, ILO and UN Volunteers.
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