Minister of Power and Energy Kanchana Wijesekera alleges National People’s Power (NPP) Leader MP Anura Kumara Dissanayake has misled the public with his vow to remove the Rs. 50 per litre tax on fuel.
Taking to ‘X’, Minister Wijesekera said MP Dissanayake had recently stated that he would reduce fuel prices by removing the Rs 50 per litre tax on fuel which was imposed in 2022 to recover the debt taken over by the Treasury as the debt has been recovered as of now.
“I’m not sure how they come up with these numbers and claims to mislead the public and the voters. The President had to make unpopular, but correct decisions to stabilize the economy and the energy sector. Due to those decisions, we have an uninterrupted supply of fuel in the country,” the minister said.
Giving a breakdown of the fuel tax, Minister Wijesekera said the Treasury took over Rs 1200 billion (USD 3400 Million) worth of Ceylon Petroleum Corporation’s (CPC) debt in 2022 and imposed a Rs 25 per litre tax initially and increased it in 2023 to Rs 50 per litre tax to recover the debt by 2029.
He further said that at the beginning of 2025, the estimated debt remaining will be Rs 656 Billion and that it would take the CPC another 4 years to repay the entire debt that was transferred to the Treasury.
“I would like to know how AKD will reduce the Rs. 50 tax and bridge the gap of Rs. 656 billion remaining. Is he going to print money, obtain more loans to repay, increase other taxes or any other way?” the minister questioned.
Minister Kanchana Wijesekera further extended an invitation to the National Peoples’ Power (NPP) and the Samagi Jana Balawegaya (SJB) to a debate on their energy policies, the government’s energy policy, and allegations of corruption in the energy sector.
His comments come in response to MP Anura Kumara Dissanayake’s recent promise that fuel prices in Sri Lanka will be reduced, under an NPP government.
Addressing an election rally, MP Dissanayake said the CPC had a $3 billion loan with the Bank of Ceylon and the People’s Bank, which the Treasury took over, and as a result, a charge of Rs. 50 per litre of fuel was implemented to repay this loan.
Noting that although the loan is nearly fully repaid, the Rs. 50 per litre charge continues to burden the public, MP Dissanayake assured that an NPP government would conduct a thorough review and reduce fuel prices accordingly. (NewsWire)
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