• Addl. staff, membership hike, sub-comms. for mins./depts. 
• Reports requested in connection with 188 petitions

Following reports that at least 50% of the petitions received by the Parliamentary Committee on Public Petitions(PCPP)  remain unaddressed, the Committee Chairperson Parliamentarian Gamini Rathnayake said that several measures have already been taken to make the Committee more efficient and responsive.

Leader of the House Minister Bimal Rathnayake recently said in the Parliament that he believed that at least 50% of the public petitions received by the Parliament had not been investigated.

Speaking to The Daily Morning, MP Gamini Rathnayake said that the Public Petitions Committee of the 10th Parliament had been actively working to address various issues identified through an extensive study of its operations. "Steps have already been taken to resolve these issues and make the Committee a more efficient and responsive body. Since the current Committee's formation in December of last year (2024), we have met for eight days, and addressed nearly 50 petitions." He said that the Committee had held more meetings than ever before. Claiming that a lack of sufficient staff has posed a challenge for its proceedings, he added that discussions had been held with the Secretary-General of the Parliament Kushani Rohanadheera and the Speaker of the Parliament Dr. Jagath Wickramaratne, after which it has been decided to assign two additional officers to assist the Committee.

In addition, the Committee’s membership has been increased from 15 to 25 under revised Standing Orders, and sub-committees have been formed to handle petitions related to specific ministries and departments.

He further said that a total of 563 petitions had been submitted to both the ninth and 10th Parliaments, out of which 254 came from MPs of the 10th Parliament. "Many petitions that had been submitted to the eighth and ninth Parliaments had been stalled, but our efforts will help process them more efficiently. We have requested reports from ministries, departments, and statutory bodies for 188 petitions."

The Committee is responsible for reviewing petitions submitted by the public and referred to it by the Parliament. It then reports its recommendations on the appropriate course of action. The Committee has the authority to summon and question individuals, request and examine documents including papers, books, and records, and access stores and property as needed.