Taxes on vehicles reduced to help a Nil Balakaya member

A senior Finance Ministry official told Lanka News Web that the government’s sudden decision to reduce the import tax on vehicles by 50% was to provide financial assistance to a leading figure in Namal Rajapaksa’s Nil Balakaya.

The official said that the tax reduction would be in place until the respective Nil Balakaya official imported a large number of vehicles. However, the government had also deiced to reduce the taxes on watches and mobile phones to prevent people from identifying the respective Nil Balakaya official.

  The Finance Ministry official said that many officials at the Ministry had objected to the government’s decision to reduce taxes on vehicles and several other goods.