The United National Party (UNP) has urged the Government to provide immediate financial relief to the public in lieu of the recent fuel price increase.
UNP Deputy Leader Ruwan Wijewardena in a statement to the media said that the Government had failed the public during the pandemic by increasing the fuel prices. “The UNP Government introduced a fuel price formula that would have regulated petrol prices based on global prices. Last year global fuel prices dropped to a record low, however, because this Government had removed the fuel price formula, local petrol prices were not adjusted to reflect this reduction,” he said.
He said that according to the annual report presented to Parliament, the Government saved as much as US $1.3 billion by the reduction of global fuel prices. “This saving was not passed on to the public by the Government,” he said.
For the past year, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the public has faced financial hardship. With this Government failing to reduce the petrol prices in line with global prices, these burdens have not been eased, he said.
Wijewardena called on the Government to use the savings from the reduction of global fuel prices last year and to provide the public with relief. “The savings gained by the Government amounts to Rs. 14,000 per adult citizen. We urge the Government to provide the public with vouchers for this amount, which they can redeem for fuel, medicine or essential food items,” he said.
Wijewardena added that the Government must also re-implement the fuel price formula, which will ensure that when fuel prices reduce in the future, the public will immediately enjoy the benefits.
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