The government has not taken any decision to provide 20 kilograms of rice to public sector employees on a credit basis, Cabinet Spokesman and Minister Nalinda Jayatissa said, stressing that the proposal was merely a suggestion made by a group of government officials.
Responding to a question from a journalist, the Minister dismissed opposition claims over the proposal, saying they were baseless.
The opposition has criticised the government by claiming that while previous administrations had promised vehicles such as the Toyota Vitz at affordable prices, the country’s economic situation had deteriorated to the point where public servants would now have to obtain even rice through a leasing-style arrangement.
Rejecting the criticism, Jayatissa said the opposition was ignoring the country’s real progress and was instead attempting to gain political mileage by focusing on isolated words and proposals.
He said Sri Lanka was undergoing far more significant and positive transformations, noting that the economy had achieved 5.1% growth in the previous quarter and had reached a stable footing due to prudent economic management.
The Minister added that the government had resumed servicing international debt obligations while taking steps to steadily strengthen the economy.
Given these achievements, Jayatissa said it was meaningless for the opposition to launch smear campaigns based on what he described as an ordinary proposal put forward by two government officials rather than a government policy.
