NPP candidate Dissanayake reveals three-tiered 'Dawn of Hope' manifesto

Presidential candidate Anura Kumara Dissanayake today (Oct 26) revealed his manifesto which he said was centred on anti-corruption policies, and mechanisms to preserve law, democracy, unity and national security.

“Any plan cannot be implemented without these pillars,” the National People’s Power (NPP) candidate said during the event at the Foundation Institute in Colombo.

Dissanayake’s manifesto titled “Dawn of Hope” drew emphasis on enforcing the law equally on all citizens while strengthening law enforcement units. “We will restructure the Police, investigation units, Attorney General’s Department, and the judicial sector,” he stressed.

On the lines of preventing fraud and corruption, the NPP candidate stated that he would transform politics “into a public service from a business”.

He vowed to abolish the issuance of vehicle permits and post-retirement pensions for parliamentarians, and cut-down expenditures of a President, citing them as a waste of public money.

“I will also limit the number of cabinet ministers to 30. There will be 30 deputy ministers but no state and non-cabinet ministers,” the presidential candidate declared.

Dissanayake asserted that there would be no room for extremism to grow within any community under his rule. He said that the people’s freedom to follow a religion of their choice would be ensured and that their cultures would be protected.

Commenting on his economic plans, the NPP candidate said his government would obtain loans from other countries only to achieve “capital and technical gains”.

He pledged to technically equip sectors such as graphite, fisheries, and agriculture, to generate more revenue to the country, and pay off the country’s debt and assist people in paying off their loans.

“We will develop the IT sector to generate a revenue of USD 15 billion,” Dissanayake aimed.

He further said that his government would identify goods which can be manufactured locally, and minimise imports of such products, to cut-down expenditure of the government.

The NPP candidate pledged to uplift education in schools, and also incorporate sports into the country’s culture, to enable the people to maintain a healthy lifestyle.

(Pix by Indika Handuwala)