Sri Lanka added 37 new senior posts to its government on Thursday, sparking a social media backlash over “useless” public spending amid its worst economic crisis on record.

The country of 22 million people has suffered for months from rampant inflation, severe shortages of essential goods and widespread protests that pushed it to default on its external debt in April.

The 37 new ministers of state will not accept their modest salaries, but they are entitled to three cars each with fuel, government housing, bodyguards, salaries for personal staff and free postage, the government said.

On social media, some Sri Lankans have vented their frustration at the use of public funds.

“No pot to pee… but 37 Ministers of State!” tweeted user Soraya Deen.

Mirhani Rahees added on the platform: “Spending on these useless ministers of state… we need to tighten our belts. My tax money goes up in flames.”

Another user, Krishna Perera, accused the government of having “no commitment to human rights, economic reform, or accountability.”

The new members are all from the coalition of former President Gotabaya Rajapaksa, who fled Sri Lanka in July after protesters overran his official residence but returned to the country last week.

Among the new ministers is Rajapaksa’s nephew Sashindra, who will take over the irrigation portfolio.

The 37 new posts join President Ranil Wickremesinghe’s 20-strong cabinet, which took office at the end of July after Rajapaksa’s departure.

Wickremesinghe, a six-time prime minister, has only one seat in the 225-seat parliament and is dependent on Rajapaksa’s Podujana Peramuna Party (SLPP), the largest bloc.

Officials close to Wickremesinghe said his attempts to form a broad unity government have not yet come to fruition as the main opposition Samagi Jana Balawegaya (SJB) has refused to join.

Sri Lanka is in talks with the International Monetary Fund to finalize a $2.9 billion bailout that will require Colombo to hike taxes and privatize loss-making state-owned companies – both politically unpopular moves.

In a new report released Tuesday, the UN Human Rights Council called on Wickremesinghe to prosecute those responsible for economic crimes that have bankrupted the country.

According to the report, a culture of impunity for war atrocities during the decades-long civil war that ended in 2009 led to the economic crisis that has eroded the rights of all communities.