State Minister Jayaratne locks in argument on prisoner costs
As of today, the total number of inmates in prisons are 28,468. […] the number of drug-related offenders has increased rapidly. As per today 50.3% of the total inmates are people who were imprisoned for drug related offences. In some prisons about 65% are detained due to drug related offences [….] During this period, that is the last half of 2021 and the year 2022, just for the twenty-eight thousand inmates the Government incurred a cost of Rs. 3.9 billion on just their food. [….] the overall maintenance of the prison system is nearly 10 billion.
Asian Mirror | August 10, 2023
Posted on: 21 September, 2023
True
MP Gammanpila raises false alarm on declining Sinhala population
"According to the 1981 census, the Sinhala population in the city of Colombo was 51%. According to the 2012 census, the Sinhala population in the city of Colombo was 28%. The Sinhala population has reduced by half. That gap has been filled by the Tamil and Muslim people who arrived from the north and east.”
Aruna | August 3, 2023
Posted on: 14 September, 2023
False
MP Dissanayake misdiagnoses the quality of SL’s health services
Even in the midst of all the shortcomings, it’s Sri Lanka that has the best health service in South Asia
The Life Traveler | July 19, 2023
Posted on: 7 September, 2023
Partly True
MP Amarasuriya: Women are contributing more but counted less in the labour force
…there are a few factors that are not considered when measuring the contribution to the labour force…[a] large chunk of unremunerated work done by women is the main type of work that is not included in these statistics. According to statistics presented through research, 60% of care-giving work…which is unremunerated, is done by women. It is while doing these tasks and in addition to it that they also engage in economic activities…research has shown that…women work at least 14 hours a day. Men work only 9 hours. It is within this reality that we are proposing that women should work more; that they are not working enough and should work more.
NPP Press Conference on NPP’s Official Facebook Page | July 16, 2023
Posted on: 17 August, 2023
True
MP Gammanpila on the CBSL’s step-motherly treatment of EPF
In addition to the provident fund of the general public, CBSL also maintains a separate provident fund for its officers […] CBSL invested its funds in places where it could get the highest returns and credited an interest of 29% from the [its] provident fund to the accounts of its officers. Yet, the general public was only given a paltry interest of 9% after [the CBSL]…
Udaya Gammanpila’s Official Facebook Page | July 4, 2023
Posted on: 10 August, 2023
True
MP Hakeem a bit dubious on Sri Lanka’s very dubious record [on economic governance]
Come September, we will be the first Asian country to be subjected to IMF review of governance diagnostic. [...] In the meantime, even in the Geneva Resolution against Sri Lanka, they spoke about the need to address the economic crimes. For the first time in the history of Human Right Council in Geneva, a government was accused of economic crimes and that again become Sri Lanka. So therefore, we have this dubious” record [...]
Manthri.lk Watch | July 6, 2023
Posted on: 3 August, 2023
Partly True
MP Gammanpila: IMF doesn’t demand DDR, but foreign debt holders do
The IMF has not imposed a condition saying to restructure domestic debt. ….. That being the case, who has intimidated us to the point of doing this? What has happened is that foreign bondholders – sovereign bondholders – have imposed a condition saying that if their debt is restructured…then, something similar must also be done to domestic debt.
Daily Mirror News YouTube page | June 27, 2023
Posted on: 27 July, 2023
True
State Minister Siyambalapitiya rides well on vehicle import numbers
...within that period [2015-2020], we have brought 2,498,714 vehicles...worth Rs. 1,331.51 billion...We have taxed [them to the value of] 991.12 billion.
YouTube Page of Parliament of Sri Lanka | June 9, 2023
Posted on: 20 July, 2023
True
Minister Fernando’s ‘Great Wall’ of expectations from Chinese tourists is too high
If each Chinese tourist spent $5,000 that could raise a figure comparable to the recent International Monetary Fund bailout…If you really look at it, tourism can get Sri Lanka out of this mess.
themorning.lk | May 23, 2023
Posted on: 13 July, 2023
Partly True
President Wickremesinghe mistakes decreased inflation as decreased prices
Inflation, which had skyrocketed to 70 percent, has now decreased to 25.2 percent, lightening the burden of daily life for all of us.
Presidential Secretariat of Sri Lanka | June 1, 2023
Posted on: 7 July, 2023
Partly True