The country will not go forward as long as the President and the Prime Minister have no unified vision. The rulers hunt their opponents instead of developing the country, Opposition Leader Mahinda Rajapaksa said.
He was speaking at the Viyath Maga Conference at the Hall De Galle in Galle on Saturday.
“President’s decision to reinstate Capital Punishment is delayed day by day. The government completed its fourth year now. Suddenly they have realised that their term is fast ending. They sign hasty agreements with various countries. Sudden policy decisions are made and attempts are made to pass inappropriate Acts in Parliament, the Opposition Leader said.
He said the Prime Minister lamented recently in Jaffna over his failure to resolve the ethnic issue. “He did not take any attempt to address the issue so far and now at the last phase of the government, is making statements on the national issue. In the past four years, they did nothing to resolve the issue. Now the people are frustrated, Rajapaksa said.
The Opposition Leader admitted that his government received loans from foreign countries. “But we initiated many a development project such as the Hambantota Port, Mattala Airport and highways,” Rajapaksa said.
“We launched the Colombo Port City project. It is a massive development project. We reclaimed 500 acres of sea area without spending a single cent from our state coffers. The rulers now criticise it and have sold the entire 500 acres out to China under a 99-year lease. Now the Chinese government is the sole authority of the port city. We have no legal right to it,” the Opposition Leader said.
Rajapaksa said the foundation stone of the project was removed by the authorities. “We are not worried. The people will remember the initiators of that remarkable project forever,” he said. The Opposition Leader said the entire country was developed by the previous regime after ending the 30-year-old war. “The People know that we carried out many huge development projects. All those halted when this government came into power. The only work this government does is taking government officials to the FCID and prosecuting them. Former Secretary to the President Lalith Weeratunge and former Telecommunications Regulatory Commission (TRC) Director General Anusha Pelpita were prosecuted for an alleged charge that they distributed sil redi. The sil redi were distributed because the Maha Sangha asked for them for the Buddha Jayanthi year,” the Opposition Leader said.
He said the top-most public servant of the government service was punished because he performed a fair duty. “Now public officers will not carry out orders given by the authorities out of fear of prosecution on a later stage,” he said.
He said the government officials carried out duties well without fear during the previous government since they trusted the authorities. “They knew that we would stand by them in any trouble they face while they were performing official duties. Now the government servants do not work, and the country does not move forward,” he said.
“We are formulating development programmes following wide discussions with the people. We launched extensive dialogues with the people for our future plans on economy, agriculture, health and education,” Mahinda Rajapaksa said.
Dr. Nalaka Godahewa and Senior Journalist Mohan Samaranayake delivered special speeches. Galle District Parliamentarians Ramesh Pathirana and Mohan P. De Silva addressed the gathering. The Galle District Professionals’ Collective organized the conference.
(Daily News)