Opposition UNP Leader Ranil Wickremesinghe in a New Year message has said that while the dawn of the New Year is traditionally an occasion of much delight to all Easterners, this time around, the New Year dawns at a time when there are immense economic hardships faced by the people.
“The transit of the Sun from the Meena House to Mesha heralding a New Year is an occasion of much delight to us Easterners. From perennial times the dawn of the national New Year has been traditionally accepted as a festival that denotes fertility and prosperity. But the New Year this time dawns at a time when employment opportunities have hit rock bottom and money is scarce. Trade has come down and traders and consumers alike have reached a helpless state. The Government has imprisoned the entire population in a huge debt-trap,” he said.
The Opposition Leader also said that hundreds of thousands of citizens of this country are suffering as refugees in the North and added that freedom has been buried while terror is rampant everywhere.
“In such an environment this Sinhala and Tamil New Year dawns with the message that we need to overcome this tragedy. That is, there is an urgent need for a political stance that could find solutions to all these problems. Let us rally for that change. Let all Sri Lankans enjoy a peaceful and prosperous New Year,” he said. |
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