Harsha de Silva
@HarshadeSilvaMP • 351,532 subscribers
Father. Husband. MP for Colombo #SriLanka. Chair #Parliament Com on Public Finance. Founder #1990SuwaSeriya. Eisenhower Global Fellow. https://t.co/qOV9CN7Uhx
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🇱🇰🇮🇳 Called out the Govt in Parliament of Sri Lanka for mocking India’s bold stand against Trump’s trade tariffs. #India, our true ally, stood by us in our toughest times. We should honor their fight, not laugh. India’s courage inspires Asia! #StandWithIndia #SriLanka #TrumpTariffs
Harsha de Silva543,436 görüntüleme • 1 yıl önce
PickMe pays 18% VAT on the full ride fare. Uber pays 18% VAT on its service fee only. Same trip. Same road. Ten times the tax burden on the local company. PickMe can't absorb that gap, so it gets passed to you. Higher fares. Every time. And beyond ride-hailing, every local SaaS platform and homegrown digital service faces the same asymmetry, making it rational for Sri Lankan entrepreneurs to simply incorporate in Singapore instead. Here's what makes it worse: it was COPF that pushed to bring foreign digital platforms into the VAT net in the first place. Before that, Uber paid nothing. We fixed half the problem. The Govt then implemented the framework without equalising the tax base, and handed foreign platforms a structural advantage inside a net we built to level the playing field. I raised this in Parliament of Sri Lanka on June 23rd. The VAT threshold fight was won. This one isn't over.
Harsha de Silva21,456 görüntüleme • 1 ay önce
This morning I presented to Parliament of Sri Lanka the #COPF report on the USD2.5m a fraud that occurred during series of debt repayments to Export Finance Australia during Nov 2025 and Jan 2026. We find clearly that a fraud linked to cybercrime did take place. We find that lapses at the governance level at both the Ministry of Finance and the CBSL likely contributed to this fraud. We find dereliction of duty at the highest level at PDMO and ERD on internal controls and IT systems. We find negligence and incompetence at the operational level at the Ministry of Finance. Criminal investigations must determine whether there had been internal collusion in perpetrating this fraud. It is beyond the scope of our Committee. Only then can it be confirmed if the cyber criminals stole LKR 825m equivalent of public funds with any collusion with officials or purely due to their negligence, incompetence and ignorance. #HarshadeSilva #ParliamentLanka #COPF #Fraud #Cybercrime #SriLanka
Harsha de Silva10,871 görüntüleme • 1 ay önce
Vehicles stuck at the port for years. Owners suffering. Treasury collecting zero revenue. At last week's #COPF session, I heard the case of a retired Govt servant who used his pension to import a vehicle, still stuck at the port, deteriorating. We have written to the Secretary to the Treasury: resolve this within three weeks. A fair penalty or demurrage settlement. Let people take their vehicles home. Nobody benefits from this except the lawyers.
Harsha de Silva11,433 görüntüleme • 1 ay önce
Online betting sites are advertising openly across Sri Lanka, yet they operate with zero regulation. How is this allowed? At our COPF session, I questioned officials on this massive legal blind spot and the billions in lost tax revenue bleeding from the state. Watch the full exchange. 👇 #SriLanka #COPF #TaxAccountability #EconomicReform #PublicPolicy
Harsha de Silva12,933 görüntüleme • 2 ay önce
At COPF yesterday, I pressed customs on detaining 1,000+ BYD EVs at Colombo Port over engine capacity claims (100kW vs. 150kW). I urged the authorities to use internationally accredited labs to test specs and get facts, not rumors. Our processes must be credible & transparent for all—no matter the country or company involved. #BYD #Customs #Transparency
Harsha de Silva28,257 görüntüleme • 1 yıl önce
#Budget2025 embrace Econ liberalization - the very policies they vehemently opposed for 40 years. While I welcome their belated recognition of market reforms, imagine where #lka could be if they hadn't blocked these measures since 1970s. Better late than never, but at what cost?
Harsha de Silva29,221 görüntüleme • 1 yıl önce
Is migration really the only path to success? 🇱🇰✈️ Many spend 3.5M–5M LKR to leave, only to face huge struggles abroad. I lived in the US for years & chose to return, because real potential to build from zero exists here with the right framework. Channel that capital into local startups, digital agencies, or tech innovation instead. We’re not a "lost cause"; we’re a nation of untapped opportunities. Let’s build systems where you don’t have to leave to win. 💼📈 #SriLanka #Economy #HarshaDeSilva #Opportunities #StayAndBuild #BrainDrain
Harsha de Silva13,678 görüntüleme • 6 ay önce
While we are supportive of the IMF program in #SriLanka and appreciate the continued focus on macro stability by the PRESENT government and her enthusiasm about the prospects for our country, I wish to point out to MD Kristalina Georgieva with all due respect that 1. Inflation came down from 70 to 2 during the PREVIOUS government. 2. growth went from -7.3% to +5% during the PREVIOUS government and 3. The first ever governance diagnostic study for a nation was requested and complete during the PREVIOUS government. #IMF
Harsha de Silva12,457 görüntüleme • 5 ay önce
Tourism paradox: Arrivals surging, revenue falling 📉. Foreigners run unlicensed cafes/bars/surf camps/tours on tourist visas—money leaks abroad via overseas payments. Add overtourism: Budget travellers jam hotspots, ruin natural wonders (Yala overcrowded, Sigiriya strained, beaches polluted), price locals out. We welcome innovation/investment—but legally! Same rules: licenses, local jobs, taxes. Shift to sustainable tourism: quality over quantity, protect our attractions. Govt must enforce framework NOW! 🇱🇰 #SriLankaTourism #SustainableTourism #Overtourism #RevenueLeakage #HarshaDeSilva
Harsha de Silva11,885 görüntüleme • 5 ay önce
Asked NPP Srilanka rep simple question: Will they support CBSL independence, key pillar in our Econ recovery? He had no answer—just empty rhetoric. This is the real #NPP: no substance, no policy, no different from populist Rajapaksas. Sri Lanka deserves better. Choose wisely.
Harsha de Silva27,326 görüntüleme • 1 yıl önce
Your trust in my parliamentary work is deeply humbling. What we witnessed was historic - Sri Lankans united across all divides for #change. As an opposition MP, I'll support President Anura Kumara Dissanayake positive reforms while staying firm on my duty: backing progress, questioning what's wrong, and fighting corruption. This is the new politics #Srilanka chose, and I'm committed to delivering on your trust 🇱🇰 🙏🏽
Harsha de Silva22,859 görüntüleme • 1 yıl önce
Yesterday we visited Kandy Court Complex and spoke with High Court Judge in charge and other officials and discussed with Sri Lanka National Archives folk on the plan to repair and recover as much of the important documents damaged; perhaps some 75,000 case records and thousands of other items in the libraries. Besides, the technical team is visiting other government institutions needing assistance. They have a good plan and I am sure they will deliver. Now my job is done! Thanks you to everyone who helped. #CycloneDitwah #SriLankafloods #Archives
Harsha de Silva11,527 görüntüleme • 8 ay önce
This is what I told Pres Anura Kumara Dissanayake at the meeting he called to get our views on #TrumpTariffs
Harsha de Silva17,482 görüntüleme • 1 yıl önce
At the Ceylon United Business Alliance International launch, I proposed two bold steps to empower Sri Lanka’s SMEs: 1) Train our diplomatic missions to actively promote exports, reviving a 2017 Harvard Kennedy School model. 2) Create a long-term credit facility using a portion of the Rs. 5T+ EPF/ETF funds. SMEs need coordinated policies, not silos, to thrive in a volatile world. 🇱🇰 Watch full speech: #SriLankaSMEs #EconomicDiplomacy #PolicyReform
Harsha de Silva11,142 görüntüleme • 1 yıl önce
Pres Anura Kumara Dissanayake’s Govt advert says taxes fund critical public services such as 1990 Suwa Seriya, serving 2M+ Sri Lankans equally. Ironic—we started it in 2016, now it’s their tax pitch! Still, it shows taxes can transform lives when used right. 🇱🇰 #TaxForPublicGood
Harsha de Silva11,993 görüntüleme • 1 yıl önce
The #NPP belief that IMF would amend #lka Debt Sustain. Analysis (DSA) based on someone else’s growth numbers is pure fantasy. This reckless approach would drive us into bankruptcy in no time. #Srilanka cannot afford this level of immaturity. Dont let them bring us disaster.
Harsha de Silva15,740 görüntüleme • 1 yıl önce