Industrial Export, Investment Promotion, Tourism and Civil Aviation Minister Prasanna Ranatunga said yesterday that the government has no intention of laying off public sector employees and truncating their salaries.
The UNP which attempted largely to curtail public service considering the public sector as a burden to the country and a waste of public funds during last five years and the JVP which was involved in brutal killing of public servants who reported for duty during the 88/89 period are now shedding crocodile tears and trying to say that government is engaged in curtailing the public service.
Today, both UNP and JVP are trying to create unnecessary problems based on the private request made by Secretary to the President Dr P B Jayasundara from state sector employees to donate a portion of their salary in a bid to reduce Sri Lanka’s budget deficit. The present government has no intention of curtailing the public service as the number of public servants was increased to 1.5 million during the former President Mahinda Rajapaksa's era.
It was the UNP which tried to paralyze the public service by curtailing many privileges entitled to the public servants. They even tried to suspend the Agrahara insurance as well as abolishing the pension scheme.
However, everyone is aware that during the former President Mahinda Rajapaksa regime, the public service was strengthened and public servants were treated well. “President Gotabaya Rajapaksa was also a good public servant," he added. “In his policy statement, there are a number of programs to strengthen the public service. That is why the majority of the state sector workers pledged their support to present President during the election," he added.
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