President Rajapaksa: Sends right message on cost of the post

To assess this claim, FactCheck consulted performance reports from the Postal Department.

Financial performance reports indicate that the postal department’s average income from 2016 to 2019 was LKR 7.42 billion, with LKR 8.40 billion in 2019. The reports also indicate that average expenditure was LKR 13.18 billion with LKR 14 billion in 2019. These numbers align the with the president’s claim on income, expenditure and the annual loss of about LKR 6 billion. On average, personnel emoluments—wages, salaries, and other benefits—accounted for 89% of total expenditure. This means that the president is also correct in asserting that much of the expenditure is due to salaries and overtime allowances.

The president is right on the numbers and attribution of expenditures. Therefore, we classify the president’s claim as TRUE.

*FactCheck’s verdict is based on the most recent information that is publicly accessible. As with every fact check, if new information becomes available, FactCheck will revisit the assessment.

Exhibit 1: Postal Department Revenue and Expenditure, 2016 – 2019 (LKR billions)

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