President sets up 14 member commission to tackle public sector salary, pension issues
President Anura Kumara Dissanayake has established a Salaries and Pensions Commission to address long-standing salary and pension issues affecting public sector employees and pensioners, with retired Ministry Secretary Asoka Peiris appointed as chairman.
The commission was formed through Extraordinary Gazette Notification No. 2494/05, dated 22 June 2026.
Its core mandate is to recommend sustainable solutions to salary and pension anomalies that have persisted for years, while factoring in the broader challenges of public financial management.
Fourteen other members will serve alongside Peiris on the commission:
- Kuruppuge Khema Anne Vidurya Swarnadhipathi
- Alagiyadura Premalal Abeysingha Gunasekara
- Niyangama Balasooriyage Monty Ranatunge
- Nadaraj Ravichandar
- Dr. Randombage Wimal Jayantha
- Dr. Gamlath Mohottige Mudith Sujeewa
- Haththasinge Thilakawardhana
- Brigadier Piyal Jude Fernando (Retd.)
- Ahamed Lebbe Mohamed Mukthar
- Senerath Tissa Bandara Ratnayake
- Abeysinghe Weerakoon Lal Chandra Weerakoon
- Gajadeera Arachchi Piyal Pathmanatha
- Jayaweera Pathirana
- Koswinnage Sarath Lal Perera
Beyond salaries and pensions, the commission has also been tasked — under Cabinet Decision No. 26/0622/816/018-1 of 6 April 2026 — with proposing a structural overhaul of the entire public service. This follows a Supreme Court ruling on 25 February 2026 concerning Fundamental Rights petition No. SC/FR 23/2014.
As part of this wider mandate, the commission has been asked to look beyond current pay structures and consider emerging technological trends and global shifts shaping public administration. It will be expected to forecast future changes and recommend strategies for building a public service that is technologically empowered, citizen-centric, ethical and accountable — one capable of keeping pace with evolving global standards.