2026-02-19 / Debate (Continued): Judicature (Amendment) Bill and Poisons, Opium and Dangerous Drugs (Amendment) Bill - Committee and Third Reading 2026-02-19
The speaker welcomes the Poisons, Opium and Dangerous Drugs (Amendment) Bill while noting it took the government a year to introduce under the "Clean Sri Lanka" initiative. The majority of the speech addresses an ongoing national gas supply crisis, which the speaker attributes not to foreign exchange shortages as during COVID, but to the government's selection of a supplier lacking the logistical capacity—ships, storage facilities, and consistent supply chains—to meet national demand of 10,000–12,000 MT per cargo, requiring four to five deliveries monthly. The speaker argues that prioritising marginal price differences over supplier capability has caused the shortages, and proposes that Litro Gas Lanka Ltd. be returned to full state control and properly managed. The speaker urges the government to resolve the crisis promptly before panic buying compounds the situation.
Mr. Deputy Speaker, the Poisons, Opium and Dangerous Drugs (Amendment) Bill is important. It took the Government a year under “Clean Sri Lanka” to bring it, but we welcome it and hope by 2026 you will deliver results.
I must raise an immediate national issue: the gas supply crisis. We faced a gas crisis during COVID due to dollar shortages. Today’s problem is different: the supplier selected by the present Government lacks the logistical capacity—ships, storage, and continuous supply—to meet daily and monthly national demand. Our storage capacity, built in the 1990s by Shell, requires 4–5 cargoes a month (10,000–12,000 MT each). A supplier without adequate fleet and logistics cannot maintain continuity.
The solution is not merely chasing price. Choosing an unqualified supplier for a small nominal price difference (say, 15 cents per dollar) has created shortages. This is a capacity issue, not just price. Consider taking Litro Gas Lanka Ltd. fully under state control again and operating it properly—consistent with your own policy rhetoric. Resolve this before panic buying doubles demand and escalates the crisis.