Parliament in the dark over spate of new borrowings by Government

By Ashwin Hemmathagama Our Lobby Correspondent

UNP MP Dr. Harsha de Silva yesterday said Parliament was in the dark over the spate of new loans approved by Cabinet.

Sri Lanka will take a “fresh loan of US$ 580 from China Development Bank” within the next few days, revealed Dr. de Silva yesterday in Parliament, taking the members by surprise.

According to him, President Mahinda Rajapaksa as the Minister of Finance has submitted a Cabinet Paper seeking approval for this agreement with China Development Bank and it will be signed during the next few days during his proposed visit to China.

“This afternoon the Minister of Finance has submitted a Cabinet Paper to sign an agreement with China to borrow US$ 580 million from China Development Bank. There is nothing disclosed on this borrowing and the repayment. You know that a Supreme Court bench led by Justice Shirani Thilakawardena held that foreign borrowing should be approved by Parliament prior to borrowing,” said Dr. de Silva, who also estimated that the total value of this loan exceeds the total revenue the Ceylon Electricity Board collects from all its customers per annum.