"Some of the action was taken under public pressure. But it is not my intention to criticize everything. Inflation which was 29.9 percent was brought down to about 0.6 percent."

Sweeping criticism by the opposition of government policy (or government policy of opposition) prevents the steady selection of good policy by the electorate in a country and reduces debate to a frivolous state.

Frivolous debate retards the progress of a country, confuses ordinary people and prevents the emergence of policy stability diverts attention away from the key causes of suffering and economic problems of the people. This prevents them from being solved.

De Silva said excessive government spending is however threatening monetary policy.

"Inflation has increased about ten fold to 6.9 percent by February," he said. "There is evidence that money printing (to finance fiscal deficits) has started again. The bane of this country is deficit spending."

He said Sri Lanka has run a budget deficit of about 10.3 percent of gross domestic product in 2009 and attempts have been made understate it by lumping grants with revenue and showing a 9.7 percent deficit.

"Other than for two years under Sir John Kotelawala, this country has deficit spent continuously."

Deficits which are financed with central bank credit (printed money) triggers high inflation in Sri Lanka.

Because Sri Lanka has a pegged exchange rate, any central bank credit that increases nominal incomes of domestic economic agents triggers imports and swiftly results in foreign reserve losses.

Emerging data shows that the central bank's Treasury bill stock has risen to 52 billion rupees from almost nothing over the three months, though a part of it may have been accumulated by foreign reserve appropriations to repay state debt.