The government has no solutions to the country’s social and economic problems, and many of the ministers can only talk about the war, said Opposition leader Ranil Wickremesinghe. He was speaking at a ceremony yesterday to mark the opening of the United National Party’s Galle District Office.
While the UNP was grateful to the security forces for capturing Kilinochchi and Mullaitivu and helping to hasten an end to the war, the opposition had serious doubts about the government’s ability to solve the country’s other problems, Mr. Wickremesinghe said.
“As the conventional war comes to an end, we have to start finding solutions to the country’s fundamental problems so we can take the country forward,” he said. “We are not convinced that the present government is ready to take up this challenge.”
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| UNP leader Ranil
Wickremesinghe |
Mr. Wickremesinghe said the country had seen no large-scale development since the days of Presidents J. R. Jayewardene and R. Premadasa, and that the effects of a “huge economic war” were being felt in a number of areas, such as education, health, transport and administration.
“We must find solutions to these problems. The government should have a proper plan and programme for this purpose,” he said.
Mr. Wickremesinghe said several ministers spoke of nothing but the war, while neglecting the problems prevailing in the areas under their ministerial purview.
The UNP had no problem with ministers who wished to talk about the war and praise the country’s war heroes, he said, but the party would also like to remind these same ministers that the public was watching to see how they performed in their respective fields.
“The objective of all Sri Lanka governments should be to weaken the LTTE and strengthen the state. If this does not happen, the government could become weak, and may even face threats from other terrorist groups,” Mr. Wickremesinghe said.
Democracy and good governance were lacking in the country, he added. “The government and the ministers go on about how important it is for the UPFA to be elected so they can continue with the military operations. Indeed, the military operations should go ahead. We are not opposed to that. What we say is that the country’s other problems should be addressed.”
Mr. Wickremesinghe said the government should consider the opposition’s suggestions and proposals and debate them in Parliament. The government feared the UNP, he said, because it was the only political party that had solutions to the country’s problems. “The government is seeking to destroy our party by enticing grassroots-level party members to join them. We will never let this happen.”
He said the government was trying to cause division within the UNP because it knew the UNP, whether it won or lost at the elections, could never be destroyed. |
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