By: Isuru Parakrama
April 20, Colombo (LNW): President Anura Kumara Dissanayake has publicly countered recent accusations from opposition parties, asserting that his comments on the distribution of public funds to local authorities have been deliberately distorted for political gain.
Addressing a political gathering, the President responded to claims that he intended to deprive Local Councils not aligned with the National People’s Power (NPP) of financial support.
Dissanayake firmly denied such allegations, stating that his remarks were misrepresented and stripped of context. His position, he clarified, was not one of partisan exclusion but rather one of financial accountability.
According to the President, funds currently available in the Treasury have been amassed through rigorous oversight of state revenue collection agencies, including regular reviews with the Inland Revenue Department and Customs officials.
He emphasised that this money—earned through meticulous fiscal discipline—would not be allocated to institutions suspected of graft and financial mismanagement.
Dissanayake clarified that funds shall not be allocated to corrupt local councils, asserting that he never claimed that only NPP-governed bodies should receive them.
“If a segment of a Municipal Council, for instance in Nuwara Eliya, is plagued by corruption, what moral justification is there to entrust them with public funds?” he asked, signalling a broader crackdown on local-level inefficiencies and alleged misconduct.
The President underscored the importance of consistency in governance. Whilst the Central Government, he claimed, had committed itself to fiscal prudence and anti-corruption measures, many Local Councils, in contrast, remained mired in wasteful practices and a lack of transparency.
“What value is there in a Central Government that avoids theft if the local authorities still act with impunity?” he questioned, highlighting a mismatch in standards.
President Dissanayake’s remarks suggest a strategic shift towards conditioning the disbursement of funds on demonstrable integrity and accountability at the local level.
In defending his position, he reiterated that this approach is not targeted at any particular party or council but is driven by an overarching commitment to protecting public resources. “The people’s money,” he insisted, “must not be handed over to those who would betray their mandate through waste or fraud.”
The President’s clarification comes amidst heightened political tension surrounding the upcoming Local Government elections, where allegations of bias in state resource allocation have become a focal point of debate.
His intervention may signal an attempt to draw a sharp line between governance that prioritises accountability and the entrenched culture of political patronage.
