Issuing aspecial communiqué, Opposition Leader Sajith Premadasa stated that Sri Lanka was turning into “a land for auction” at the mercy of international bidders. He warned that the country was in danger and future generations will have to bear the reparations of irresponsible decisions being made by the leaders in Sri Lanka.
MP Premedasa raised concerns with regard to the damage being done to Sri Lanka’s economy as well as natural resources.He commented saying that while the incumbent government (through its golden visions), made promises to “secure the country”, in reality natural resources were being destroyed, and important monuments being sold. MP Premadasa made special reference to the proposal to hand over several historically-important Government buildings in Colombo and Fort, to private investors, under the pretext of “development”.
Commenting on the pandemic situation,he highlighted the following issues:
- the lack of medical supplies to treat covid-19 patients and many reports of irregularities in the quarantine process
- Irregular vaccine and quarantine procedures, hindering pandemic mitigation efforts by the health sector
- severe shortage of drugs for Non-Communicable Diseases such as cancer, diabetes and heart disease
and questioned as to whether the government has a full-proof plan to manage the health crisis.
Expressing his views on the economic situation of the country, he said that
- vital industries such as foreign exchange, tourism, and apparel industries– which help generate clashflows, have become stagnant as a result of the pandemic situation.
- production and services in the country had declined
- Sri Lanka has lost the expected export earnings of most products, including tea, and those who generate an income using these products are facing difficulties.
Thus, MP Premadasa concluded that the incumbent government was not equipped to protect, much less run the country.
