Despite sweeping pre-election pledges to break from the past, the National People’s Power (NPP)-led government has yet to deliver on one of its headline promises turning unused ministerial bungalows into revenue-generating properties.
Nearly nine months after the September presidential election, dozens of colonial-era government bungalows that once served as official residences for Cabinet and State Ministers remain unoccupied, unutilized, and unproductive, despite calls to convert them into economically viable spaces.
In the run-up to the election, the NPP had criticized previous administrations for assigning these prime properties to ministers, vowing instead to rent them out or repurpose them for activities that would benefit the economy and save public funds.
But in reality, the bungalows are still idle, and the government has yet to finalize a single project involving their use.
Public Administration Minister Prof. Chandana Abayaratne admitted that although the government has identified around 50 such bungalows, with 30 large enough to be converted into economic or official use, no concrete decision has been made. “We have received requests from foreign missions, government agencies, and tourism operators,” he said. “We have done valuations and could rent them for good prices, but no action has been taken yet.”
Among the entities that have expressed interest are the Election Commission and several foreign diplomatic missions.
Originally built during the late colonial period to house British officials, these sprawling properties were practical back when Sri Lanka lacked hotels or event venues, serving as both residences and reception spaces. Today, however, they are expensive to maintain and increasingly symbolic of political privilege.
Minister Abayaratne downplayed the current maintenance cost, calling it “minimal,” but acknowledged that military security is in place to protect stored valuables, raising further questions about ongoing resource use with no returns.
Meanwhile, smaller government-owned houses are also under review, with plans to allocate them for “small activities,” though specifics remain unclear.
The delay in taking action reflects a growing gap between campaign rhetoric and administrative follow-through, as Sri Lanka’s economy continues to struggle. In the eyes of critics, these empty mansions stand as architectural reminders of bureaucratic inertia, emblematic of lost opportunity in a time when every rupee counts.
