The Samagi Jana Balawegaya has requested the Minister of Finance to disclose the conditions under which the government obtained a USD 1 billion loan from India.
Parliamentarian Mujibur Rahman addressing a media briefing today stated the government should make public the terms and conditions under which the loan with India was agreed upon, questioning if Sri Lankan assets including the Mattala Airport, the Sampur Coal Power Plant, the oil deposits in Mannar, and the islands surrounding the Jaffna District were to be handed over adding that the public has a right to know.
The Parliamentarian said the Finance Minister’s visits to India were not made known until the last moment and claimed that India was making various demands over Lankan assets.
On a separate note the Parliamentarian claimed although the President requested the public to save fuel and make sacrifices, two gas shipments to Sri Lanka were at sea for 12 days with each ship charging USD 18,000 as late fees daily and the government was forced to pay USD 432,000 for both shipments at a time that the country lacks dollars.
MP Rahman attributed this incident to the wrong decisions of the government condemning its failure to open a Letter of Credit and make payments on time.
He added the payment amounted to Rs.120 million and criticised the President’s request for the public to make sacrifices.
The MP further recalled a payment of USD 6.7 million to China in fertiliser payments claiming that no fertiliser reached Sri Lanka.
