Govt. moving towards further increasing SL’s debt burden – NPP MP

by Saman Indrajith

JVP-led NPP said the budget 2021 is an indication that the government is planning to further increase the country’s debt burden.

NPP MP Vijitha Herath participating in the second reading of the budget debate said that according to the budget proposals, the government’s revenue would be Rs 1,961 billion and the expenditure Rs 3,500 billion.

“There is no mention of how the gap will be bridged. This means the government plans to obtain loans amounting to Rs 3,000 billion. So far, this government has already taken Rs. 2,000 billion in loans. They have no option but to go in for more loans more loans to the tune of Rs 3,000 billion”, he said.

“The government’s plan is clear. Over the 2020-2021 period, the idea is to increase the debt burden by five trillion rupees. Then, we will be in a Rs. 18 trillion debt trap. The budget proposals have nothing new except printing more currency notes and getting more loans. There are no plans to generate revenue. Building an economy means generating revenue through increasing production in the country. Printing money and getting loans show the inability of a government. This government does exactly opposite of what it promised the people to get their votes”, he further said.

The government vowed not to sell national assets, but hot on the heels of assuming office, the cabinet approved selling three acres of land behind Shangri-la to Perennial Real Estate Holdings Limited. It slapped a tax on sugar saying that it was to promote local sugar production but recently the tax was reduced, which proved they had no genuine intention of promoting local production, the MP added.

“From January to August, tea production decreased by 16 percent, rubber by 5.9 percent, coconut by 11.3 percent. The industrial sector has collapsed and the fisheries sector is facing an unprecedented crisis. During the same period, the government imported 10,726 metric tonnes of rice. The government’s path is very clear. It is going down the path of neo-liberal economic policies. The government has not yet passed the benefit of nose diving global oil prices to the people. The government has failed in its first year. The performance of the next four years could easily be guessed,” MP Herath added.