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By Sandun Jayawardana  

The government has so far refused to divulge details concerning the outcome of discussions with the IMF and contents of any agreement that was reached. On Wednesday (9) though, Samagi Jana Balawegaya (SJB) MP Dr. Harsha De Silva produced what he claimed “with responsibility” was a copy of what the government had agreed to under the IMF staff level agreement.

Harsha De Silva: I’m not going to table this because then we will be accused of leaking sensitive information

Dr. De Silva, who is the Chairman of the Committee on Public Finance (COPF), said the document did not come through Parliament. “This document had been distributed among certain persons serving on committees appointed by the President. How can this be? I’m not going to table this because then we will be accused of leaking sensitive information,” he said.

Dr. De Silva questioned how the contents of an agreement that had not been given to the COPF ended up in the hands of outside elements. “I won’t read the contents but it details how to increase Value Added Tax (VAT), Personal Income Tax, Withholding Tax, Corporate Income Tax and Excise Customs Duties,” he told Parliament.

State Minister of Finance Ranjith Siyambalapitiya requested Dr. De Silva “not to frighten the people” by reading from an unverified document that he had received indirectly. “Please understand the challenge we are facing. You are the COPF Chairman. You are doing more damage by the way you claim how you won’t read the document here. This is wrong,” the minister charged.

The opposition respected State Minister Siyambalapitiya, but he should ensure that at least he puts a stop to the government’s attempts to hide details of the agreement from Parliament and the people, insisted Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP) MP Dilan Perera, who is part of the SLPP opposition group led by Dullas Alahapperuma.

Dr. De Silva stressed that what he wanted to point out was that the contents of such an important agreement, which the government had so far refused to provide to the COPF, was in the hands of outsiders. “This is highly sensitive information and in the hands of some, it would be tantamount to them winning the lottery since they would be able to reap various benefits from having access to this information. That is wrong.

At the very least, the agreement must be presented to the COPF and discussed there.”

How was the opposition expected to take part in the Budget debate next week when the government had still not presented the agreement it had reached with the IMF, Chief Opposition Whip Lakshman Kiriella questioned on Thursday (10) when President and Finance Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe was also in attendance.

“What are the taxes? What are the special levies? We know nothing about any of it. The question before us is can we debate this Budget without knowing the agreements reached with the IMF.”

Mr Kiriella pointed out that when the President was an opposition MP, he repeatedly called on the government to present any agreement reached with the IMF. Mr Wickremesinghe even clashed with Minister Basil Rajapaksa during the All Party Conference over this issue, the chief opposition whip reminded. He called on the President to table the agreement.

“We are prepared to support these efforts. That is why we voted for the 21st Amendment. We know there is a problem in the country. But we are currently groping in the dark and this has raised suspicion as to what the government is planning to do,” Mr Kiriella claimed.    Making a special statement in Parliament on Thursday (10), President Ranil Wickremesinghe claimed there was no need to worry about IMF assistance as it was assured when he met with the IMF Managing Director during the COP 27 summit in Egypt.

The government also had to discuss debt restructuring with Japan, China and India as well as private creditors in addition to the IMF, Mr Wickremesinghe added. The staff level agreement with the IMF may be revised based on these discussions.

The full details will be revealed thereafter, he told the chief opposition whip. “They (IMF) has given us targets. That won’t change. The Budget is to try and accelerate it so that we can have a higher growth rate and more development and investment.”

The President pledged to keep the Parliament informed of developments but declined to release the agreement on the grounds that the IMF had instructed the government not to release it until the next round of negotiations are completed.

Parliament next convenes on Monday when President Wickremesinghe will deliver the 2023 Budget speech.