President of the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka and Leader of the United National Party (UNP)
Jun 27 • 7 tweets • 3 min read
Sri Lanka has reached a final agreement with our official bilateral creditors in Paris and has signed another agreement with China’s Exim Bank in Beijing. This milestone reflects the hard work and dedication of our efforts. With these agreements, we will be able to defer all bilateral loan instalment payments until 2028. Furthermore, we will have the opportunity to repay all the loans on concessional terms, with an extended period until 2043. This is indeed encouraging news for those who genuinely care about our country’s welfare.
We have not had an easy journey so far. I thank the people of this country who supported us with perseverance, the ministers and officials who have worked hard for this task, our creditors including India, China, China Exim Bank, France, Japan, the Paris Club Secretariat, Lazard, and Clifford Chance, and everyone involved who worked together to strengthen our economy.
Feb 9, 2023 • 5 tweets • 1 min read
Last year, state-owned enterprises lost 800 billion rupees. People have been bearing these losses for years without realising their situation. The government should intervene only in monitoring functions and public facilities, while private enterprises should be the driving force
We're speeding up the process of tracking down missing persons & strengthening the Office on Missing Persons. We’re focusing on people who have been imprisoned for their involvement in terrorist activities for years without trial & taking steps to release them systematically.
Feb 5, 2023 • 9 tweets • 2 min read
While we celebrate the 75th anniversary of our independence & honour those who worked hard for the country's freedom, let us focus on regaining the freedom we have lost today.
After independence, we divided in terms of race, religion & region to the point of developing animosity against each other. Various groups exploited this division to gain power & created further rifts among people. Instead of rejecting them, we accorded power to these same groups
Oct 7, 2022 • 9 tweets • 4 min read
1/9 During my visit to the UK, Japan and the Philippines, I met with a number of world leaders and addressed the @ADB_HQ Board of Governors meeting in Manilla attended by Finance Ministers from 68 countries. ADB has indicated that they are prepared to extend a loan of $500m.
2/9 During my recent meeting with Prime Minister @leehsienloong, we had discussions on revisiting the free trade agreement between our two countries. This will strengthen Sri Lanka’s economic relations with Southeast Asia.
Jun 22, 2022 • 16 tweets • 4 min read
1. Since I was sworn in as PM, I have been updating you on the real situation and measures we have been taking every 2 weeks. Some have ridiculed this while others have welcomed it. Whichever group you belong to we need to come together to rebuild our country.
2. The first step is to arrive at an agreement with IMF to obtain an additional credit facility. Next is to go for an immediate programme to stabilize the economy & increase our export revenue. @CBSL , Treasury, relevant government officials & professionals have formulated a plan
Jun 20, 2022 • 4 tweets • 1 min read
Today, I met the visiting IMF Team and commenced discussions. Looking forward to reaching a staff level agreement and finalizing the program soon.
After several rounds of discussions with all parties, the final draft of the 21st amendment to Sri Lanka’s constitution received cabinet approval and is expected to be tabled in Parliament after being gazetted.
Jun 8, 2022 • 16 tweets • 3 min read
1) I trust everyone understands the crisis our country faces. Our primary focus is economic stability. We must set aside traditional political ideologies and make every effort to rebuild the country. Every citizen should play a role in this effort. We need to revive the economy.
2) The country spends $500 million on Fuel and $40 million on gas monthly. The next three weeks will be a difficult but we are trying to ensure the shortages fuel and gas will end. Let’s face these difficult three weeks united and with patience.
May 29, 2022 • 13 tweets • 2 min read
Apart from the economic issues, there are also 2 major issues in the political sphere we are facing.
1.21st Amendment: We, as party leaders, are now finalizing this.
2.The abolition of the Executive Presidency: The timing and methodology must be decided by the Party Leaders.
The functioning of the Parliament has been paralyzed due to the weakening of the Parliamentary powers by the 20th Amendment. The Executive has been given more powers. The Parliament has failed to prevent the economic crisis despite the ruling party having a majority in Parliament
May 27, 2022 • 11 tweets • 3 min read
1. Assistance from India and Japan: I am grateful for the positive response from India and Japan on the proposal made for the Quad members (United States, India, Japan, and Australia) to take the lead in setting up a foreign aid consortium to assist Sri Lanka.
I had a conversation with India's Minister of Finance @nsitharaman today. I expressed our country's appreciation for the support India has extended during this difficult period. I look forward to further strengthening ties between our nations.
May 19, 2022 • 9 tweets • 3 min read
1. Ministerial Salaries & Privileges:
With the view of easing public expenditure; the new Cabinet Ministers of the Government will forgo ministerial salaries while a limit will be placed on other benefits enjoyed to date.
1. I have instructed the staff of the Prime Minister's office to slash the expenses of our office by 50%. We need to work towards instilling the correct financial discipline to hasten the country's economic recovery.
#SriLankaEconomicCrisis2. We are expecting to finalize the draft of the 21st Amendment by next week
1. The next couple of months will be the most difficult ones of our lives. I have no desire to hide the truth and to lie to the public. Although these facts are unpleasant and terrifying, this is the true situation.
There is a lot to be done and undone. We are prioritizing matters, rest assured they shall be addressed as early as possible. We have managed to get things moving in the last 48 hours. I will provide a full explanation of the financial crisis faced by the country tomorrow (16)1/ Fuel: Given the dollar scarcity at banks, we are exploring other options of securing the necessary funds to pay for the coming week's fuel requirements.
