UNP says govt. using EPF money to fund jumbo Cabinet
By Kelum Bandara & Gihan de Chickera.
The UNP charged in parliament yesterday that the government had obtained Rs 37 billion from the Employees Provident Fund (EPF), belonging to three million workers, just to maintain its jumbo cabinet.
UNP MP for Kegalle district, Kabir Hashim, said that another overdraft worth Rs. 50 billion had been obtained from the Bank of Ceylon. He said the limit of this overdraft had risen only up to Rs 35 billion, even during the rule of former President Chandrika Kumaratunga. ?During our time between 2001 and 2004, we were able to reduce this to zero, and maintain a surplus,? he said.
He charged that the government had borrowed these funds while slashing capital expenditure for Education, Health and Agriculture. Mr. Hashim noted that they wouldn?t have minded if these monies were being spent at least for keeping promises made in the ?Mahinda Chintanaya? such as giving a nutrition package to pregnant mothers. ?Today however there are 110 ministers. What a colossal amount of money is spent for their maintenance while also purchasing vehicles worth millions for them,? he said.
The UNP also said projects being implemented under the ?Maga Neguma? programme, had ground to a standstill today while disparities in economic development between people in the western province and rural areas had widened under this government. ?Today, poverty levels have increased, according to the World Bank report for 2004/2005,? he said.
In the meantime, he said that the sale of luxury vehicles such as Volvos, Defenders, Land cruisers and Porches in particular had increased. He said that the sale of Porches alone had risen by 39 percent. ?This means that there is a wide disparity in income distribution,? he said.
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