Former Sri Lankan Speakers spent over $220,000 on fuel for official vehicles

Former Speakers of Parliament have consumed fuel worth over 75 million rupees (approximately $220,000 USD) for their official vehicles between 2016 and 2024, a special audit report by the National Audit Office on Parliament revealed. The report states that 299,146 liters of fuel were used during this period.

The audit observed a significant increase in monthly fuel consumption for the Speaker in 2023 and 2024, rising by 66% and 155% respectively compared to 2022. The Speaker used 3,994 liters per month in 2023 and 6,122 liters in 2024. Similarly, the Deputy Speaker used nearly 204,536 liters of fuel, costing close to 50 million rupees, between 2016 and 2024.

Furthermore, the Deputy Speaker's office obtained over 21,299 liters of fuel, valued at more than 8.5 million rupees, for a private car in 2023 and 2024, in addition to the three official vehicles allocated to the position. The Deputy Chairman of Committees also used 164,235 liters of fuel, costing over 35 million rupees, during the same period.

The report also highlighted that several departmental heads within Parliament exceeded their allocated mileage for personal travel, resulting in losses of nearly 11 million rupees. The Secretary-General of Parliament also used 15,063 liters of fuel for two official vehicles simultaneously between 2022 and 2023, costing approximately 23 million rupees. This amount represents an excess of about 2,300 liters compared to the fuel allocation for a ministerial secretary, the highest in public service.