RTI request for names of Deputy Ministers and Speaker who received Lorris Road official residences denied by Ministry. Appeal filed, no response yet.
The Ministry of Public Administration, Provincial Councils and Local Government has refused to provide information requested through a Right to Information application seeking details of which Deputy Ministers, including the Speaker, were allocated houses from the government-owned Lorris Road housing complex in Colombo 04. Responding to the RTI application filed by journalist Rekha Nilukshi on November 20, 2025, the Ministry’s Information Officer, Hiransa Kalutantri, on January 9, 2026, refused to disclose information regarding the Deputy Ministers residing in those houses.
The reason cited for refusing the information was that the request falls under Section 5(1)(a) of the Right to Information Act No. 12 of 2016, subject to the provisions of Section 5(1)(2). An appeal regarding the refusal to provide this information was submitted to the Ministry of Public Administration on February 9, 2026, but no response has been received to date. On November 18, 2025, responding to a question posed in Parliament by MP Chamara Sampath, Minister of Public Administration Dr. A.H.M.H. Abeyrathne stated that six Deputy Ministers and the Speaker had been provided with official residences on a rental basis from the housing complex located on Norris Road, Colombo 04.
Confirming this, Cabinet Media Spokesman Nalinda Jayatissa also stated that houses had been allocated in this manner from the Norris Road housing complex. Meanwhile, official residence No. 8-1 on Norris Road was allocated to Speaker I.W.M.J. Wickramaratne for the duration of his tenure as Speaker, with approval granted from May 3, 2025, signed by Senior Assistant Secretary (Housing and Development) J.A.A.N. Jayawera, on behalf of Secretary to the Ministry of Public Administration S. Alokabandara.
Furthermore, government official residence No. 4-3 on Norris Lane was allocated to the Speaker’s Personal Secretary, Chameera Priyashanka Gallage, on May 6, 2025, with the approval of the Ministry of Public Administration. That residence has been allocated to Mr. Gallage until May 5, 2030, or for the duration he holds the position of Personal Secretary to the Speaker. The letter granting approval for allocating the official residence to Mr. Gallage states that such official residences are allocated subject to the provisions of Public Administration Circular 22/2006 and other regulations periodically imposed by the government regarding public housing.
