The joint opposition said today that they will bring a no-confidence motion against Finance Minister Ravi Karunanayake for misleading the parliament, the President and the public for presenting bogus figures in his budget speech.
The joint opposition also said that they will vote against the budget and will do its utmost to prevent it from being adopted.
Meanwhile Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP) parliamentarians who have opted to sit in the opposition today told President Maithripala Sirisena that the budget proposals only contained policies of Ranil Wickremesinghe and not that of Sirisena.
They had told Sirisena that Wickremesinghe and the UNP was taking him for a ride.
The SLFP opposition parliamentarians met Sirisena today to discuss about the budget proposals.
The SLFP parliamentarians had said that the proposal which says that monies equivalent to nearly 6 per cent of the GDP has been allocated for education was misleading.
Also they had raised concern over plans to merge the Employee Provident Fund and Employees Trust Fund, and the heavy tax imposed on vehicles and a number of other services and products.
Meanwhile a member of the joint opposition Udaya Gammanpila said that his group will soon reveal the truth about misleading figures quoted by Karunanayake.
The joint opposition he said was currently preparing the relevant facts and figures to show how Karunanayake had misled the parliament and the public.
The joint opposition claimed that this was the first time since Independence that a Finance minister had misled the house quoting wrong figures in a budget speech.
Douglas / November 24, 2015
Can we know what this “Joint Opposition” is? Who is heading it? Is it the Leader of the “Official” Opposition or who else has taken over that “Leadership”?
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Hiran / November 24, 2015
The budget is not all that rosy as the media portrays and as certain business leaders claim. Yet there is a master plan behind the initial estimates of revenues. Actually, most items which are now common household good in a middle income family have been considered as luxury items and the tax on them has increased. Interests on deposits too will become part of employment income and will be taxed. So if you have saved in the past through austerity measures you have taken it will be liable to tax at15pc if your income threshold exceeds Rs. 2.4m. Corporate entities will also have to incur a rude shock but since some effort has been made to consider the aspirations of the poor and formulating price ceilings and floors, they are laudable as they account for the less privileged; and this exactly what the opposition fears. The entrenching of the new government is assured if this budget is passed in parliament. MS must not fall prey to bogus calls for reversing such a commendable budget, which will hurt most of us who belong to the higher income group. Yet this the way forward.
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srilal / November 24, 2015
“The joint opposition claimed that this was the first time since Independence that a Finance minister had misled the house quoting wrong figures in a budget speech.”
What a bunch of clowns ? these losers have nothing else to say, get that Gembanpila con man arrested for his day light robbery , what about Booruwnsa’s dozens of crimes ? the other big cheat Prassanna Ranthunga , what has happened to his ransom/bribery case ? Mahidananda, R Abeygunawardana , Johnston et al still walking free as if nothing has happened , what is really happening ? i’ve one solution though , appoint FM Sarath Fonseka as the law & order minister , guaranteed he will get moving ;furthermore , there will be no more lethargic bureaucrats in the law & order ministry.
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leelagemalli / November 25, 2015
You may be right.
Either appoint him as Law and order minister or bring all these men of the joint opposition to lanken prisons. Longer we wait, easier for them to dance on the floor as if allegations levelled for them are just to misguide the nation. Ranil and My3 should focus on bringing any of the sharks behind bars soon. That is imperative. Longer we wait, people will easily loose their likes – Then it will be easier for those criminal men to manipulate them. Fact is every 2nd of the country among the vote eligibles are fools and easily manipulative. They just live the life from day to another. Values are far from their mind sets.
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bobby / November 24, 2015
No opposition.all are actors.
Every body must work to build the country towards.
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Rohan r / November 24, 2015
Douglas,
The official opposition leader sampathan is not the real opposition leadrer. He was elected to the position through mamopulation. If a vote was taken among the opposition MPS he wouldn’t have got elected. Now that he is elected, someone has to do the opposition job, as he is not doing i5. He is only interested in NE issues. Reg the budget all he had to say was, it’s a good budget. As the opposition leader he should have voice his opinion on matters that effects people.
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Native Vedda / November 24, 2015
Rohan r
“If a vote was taken among the opposition MPS he wouldn’t have got elected.”
Why hasn’t Mahinda the crook brought a no-confidence motion in the parliament against Sambandan and elect someone else as a “credible opposition leader”?
Why hasn’t he stop his MPs joining the government instead all of them sitting in the opposition benches forming a “credible opposition”?
I am confused.
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Douglas / November 25, 2015
Rohan r: It is admitted that the present Leader of the Opposition has still to show the country that he is the “National Opposition”; but regret to say he has failed in that DUTY by the country. The only Opposition I see is the JVP, because they voice opinion on issues that concerns the country and the people. The rest who now want to bring a No Confidence did not participate at all on the day JVP highlighted the present Government’s failures and delays in handling the most contentious issues of corruption and frauds of the past regime. If they call themselves a “Joint Opposition” all of them should have participated in that debate and demanded immediate action on those matters. Their SILENCE on those issues shows that they are part and parcel of this Government. So why are they now coming with this No Confidence; instead they must pass “NO Confidence” on themselves. As at present THEY are neither here nor there. Do they have the courage or the confidence to break ties with the major party SLFP/UPLF and form one “common front” and declare/register as the OPPOSITION in the Parliament and secure that “Legal Status”? In my opinion, they are a bunch of SELF-SERVING OPPORTUNISTIC VULTURES who thrive on sucking the blood of this nation. They are goof for nothing.
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Native Vedda / November 25, 2015
Douglas
“It is admitted that the present Leader of the Opposition has still to show the country that he is the “National Opposition”; but regret to say he has failed in that DUTY by the country.”
The very purpose of SLFP, MR and his supporters sitting in the opposition is to undermine the official opposition party and its leader.
If you are too concerned about the quality of the official opposition you must take a tough line on the party which sits in the government as well as in the opposition. MR and his goons want to have the cake and eat it.
Are you going to sit back and relax?
I am no longer certain as to who is in the opposition and who serve the present government, a very innovative home grown arrangement.
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K.A Sumanasekera / November 25, 2015
The JVP MP’s eloquent, precise, clear and factual explanation of the dark side of Galleon’s Budget is magnificent.
But it wouldn’t make any difference to the Sinhala Buddhist dodos who are sitting with the UNP on Government benches.
Batalanda Ranil and Galleon Ravi from Bloemendhal have set the Economic framework in place to sell our Nation to the West, both Economically as well as Politically .
And fatten the Elite , Anglicans, Vellalas and a few Sinhalese who think they are Elite.
What bugs me most is Galleon boasting about spending 6 % of the GDP on educating the kids.
When Batalanda’s first act was to scrap the 1000 Free Schools for our Dalit kids in the Villages, which would have given them at least some access to Science, Technology and IT in particular.
But the JHU gura Cahmpakaya trying to help explain Galleon Accounting is hilarious.
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gamini / November 25, 2015
There is nothing more hilarious than this bugger croaking as a frog after the great defeat of his mentor MR. Aney Sumanayo, palayang bung yanda! At least now keep quiet.
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BBS Rep / November 25, 2015
It is the job of the opposition to find holes in the budget. After all they are well paid and given all kinds of perks to sit in the opposition benches and do a job.
However Gammanpila is bringing a no confidence motion prior to proving the offences that he is alleging the Finance Minister to have committed – that of misleading the house. This is a good example of the cart before the horse. First Gammanpila must give credible evidence that the Minister has misled the parliament. He must give a credible set of facts and figures. When that has been debated and if Ravi’s set of facts and figures don’t add up, it is then that a no confidence motion must be mounted.
I feel that Gammanpila is only trying out a cheap stunt.
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The Rogue Ayer / November 25, 2015
Is not Honorable Ravi the most entertaining minister?
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N.Wimaladasa / November 25, 2015
The man of Ravi K…M o F has no experiences of working knowledge political-economy or financial revolution of that system of capitalist sustainability growth, put into order; how can that man run new revitalization economy by his guidance.
UNP -RANIL W…and his bunch of right-wing economics of influence by Praskaraligm and Arjuna Mhandarn that Tamil political class represtantive Eealimist been able guide New capitalist development .
That will never happen under the UNP Ranil W… and Tamil chavanist-feudal roots never allows us to an open path sustsnibility development under right wing UNP led regime back by US and Indian big bourgeois.
Their politics is no room for an Independent and Sovereignty nation ,but they will created new depend Capitalist mode will server for US and Indian capital masters.
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K.A Sumanasekera / November 25, 2015
Metropolis Architect Champakaya looks like an idiot, after his attempt to explain Galleon Accountants 6 % allocation on Education.
It is non other than Grego , the State Minister of Education who rubbished Chamapakaya’s bullshit.
“6 % is coming in 5 years and not now” said Grego in Jaffna.
You know why , Vellalas are good accountants .You can’t bullshit them..
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Douglas / November 25, 2015
Native Vedda: Thank you. “Are you going to sit back an relax” you asked me. NO. NOT AT ALL. So far I have been watching how the Official Opposition is working within the Parliament. To tell you, I am not at all impressed with the way the Leader of the Opposition is functioning in that position. Instead, the Chief Opposition Whip has taken over that responsibility and if it is not for him, we will not see any Official opposition. Also, if he has not at least taken that initiative, all those “Jokers” and “vagabonds” who call themselves “Joint Opposition” would have by now thrown out the Official Opposition. That situation has come about as a result of our Official Opposition Leader’s neglect of not rising to the occasion to get involved in National Issues. We need him to and must be insisted to take a prominent stand on our National Issues and show the true sense of the Opposition. For that we will work hard. Let us see how it works.
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