President Gotabaya Rajapaksa addressing the first public rally’ organised by the Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP) said that the groups that ruled the country previously are reuniting to mislead the people and drag the nation into an abyss.
The President said that despite the challenges, he is committed to increasing the income of the farming community by 100 percent and to protect the country and the people as pledged in the national policy framework “Vistas of Prosperity and Splendour”.
The Public Rally of ‘Pohottuwa’ was held under the patronage of President Gotabaya Rajapaksa and Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa in the sacred city of Anuradhapura, on February 9, and was endorsed by an unprecedented crowd.
It was the first in a series of public rallies by the SLPP to make the public aware on the targets achieved by the Government in the face of challenges in line with the national policy framework “Vistas of Prosperity and Splendour”.
Foreign forces
The President pointed out that local and foreign forces were working together to prevent the journey of the Government as they had done to topple the Mahinda Rajapaksa Government. The policies of the Government are aimed at the well-being of the future generations. Therefore, the President stressed that he would continue to move forward despite obstacles.
Those who take to the streets to launch protests against the Government should think about the people and not the Government, he said. Public officials should make a commitment to serve the country and the people. The President also commented on the need to allow the implementation of Government policies, without placing the country under lockdowns, in order to protect the re-emerging economy.
Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa said: “The SLPP planned to start a new journey from Anuradhapura, the site of previous public rallies that he said had propelled the party to electoral success.” He said, “Every fight we won was started here. Today, we start such a fresh journey from the same place-Anuradhapura.”
“For two years we battled the Covid-19 pandemic. That entire period, we focused on saving the people from this epidemic,” he said, questioning the Opposition’s criticism of the Government’s handling of the epidemic. He accused the Opposition of creating doubts among the public over the efficacy of the Chinese-made Sinopharm vaccine – the country’s most widely used Covid-19 jab.
Create chaos
“They were able to play around like this because we silently carried out our work while protecting the people. The longer we stay quiet, the harder they try to create chaos in the country,” he said.
Premier Rajapaksa also touched on the fertiliser issue, though he stopped short of admitting that the timing of the policy was questionable. “You know what the farmer’s issue is. We all know, because we too come from farming backgrounds,” he said.
Rajapaksa blamed the United National Party (UNP), despite governing for decades, were unable to pay the farmers enough in 2015. Issuing a warning to the Opposition, the premier said: “They must remember that we too are very used to the streets. We’re used to going on ‘Paada Yathras.’ We too will come to the street now.”
The President, the Prime Minister and the National Organiser of the SLPP Basil Rajapaksa, were received by the Anuradhapura District Leader, S. M. Chandrasena, accompanied by Cabinet and State Ministers.
Ministers S.M. Chandrasena, G. L. Peiris, Rohitha Abeygunawardena, Johnston Fernando, Pavithra Wanniarachchi, State Ministers Shehan Semasinghe, Channa Jayasumana, Kanchana Wijesekera, MPs H. Nandasena and K.P.S. Kumarasiri also addressed the rally.
The public rally took place just 5 days after the country’s 74th anniversary of independence that was celebrated befittingly in Colombo. The President’s speech in Anuradhapura was a continuation of his address to the nation on Independence Day.
Dignified citizens
The President on February 4, said, “Throughout history, people of various nations have struggled, fought and made great sacrifices for their right to live as dignified citizens in a free country.”
“It is now 74 years since our country finally gained freedom after 450 years of European colonial rule. Even after independence, we had to fight for nearly three decades against an attempt to divide this country through terrorism.”
“Today, Sri Lanka is a free, sovereign, democratic country. We are its proud citizens. I take this opportunity to pay tribute to all patriots who dedicated themselves to gain full freedom for our country facing various obstacles throughout history, and continue to secure the freedom so gained.”
“Every Sri Lankan citizen, irrespective of any community or religion, has the right to live freely and safely anywhere in the country today.
There is freedom to practise the religion of their choice. There is freedom to hold independent opinions and express ideas. There is full media freedom in the country. Sri Lankan citizens have the freedom to elect their representatives through a fully democratic mechanism, and for those interested, to engage in the political process and governance.”
Greatest benefit
“This is a cause for joy and pride for all of us. As people of a free and democratic country, all of us have rights as well as responsibilities. The greatest benefit from freedom is when everyone fulfils their duty to the country. It is not appropriate to speak of rights only, whilst forgetting responsibilities.”
“We can make our way forward successful only with a positive attitude that looks optimistically towards the future. We can surmount the challenges we meet only if we dedicate ourselves to a victorious journey.”
A week before Minister Basil Rajapaksa told a media briefing that: “We start our campaign rally from Anuradhapura,” in response to a question about the Government’s plan to hold elections.
He said “That’s our first meeting. That’s a public rally. Then we will have our women’s conventions over the next two weekends.” He added that the SLPP has so far scheduled meetings to be held in five provinces.
He said, “We had to follow the health guidelines and thus had to temporarily give less priority to political activity. We cannot do that anymore. So, we are starting the meetings with the public.”
Compensation scheme
The SLPP-led coalition’s first rally comes after the Government announced a 40-billion-rupee compensation scheme for farmers hit by the chemical fertiliser ban. It also announced a 229-billion-rupee relief package targeting public servants, pensioners, farmers, many of whom are rural folk.
President Gotabaya Rajapaksa had reiterated that he would execute policies that were not implemented by any of his predecessors since the country gained independence from the British colonial rulers.
However, a majority of his tenure was hit by the Covid-19 pandemic, which the Government has said was the main reason for the host of issues the country is currently facing.
Both opposition centre-right Samagi Jana Balawegaya (SJB) and the Marxist Janatha Vimukthi Perumuna (JVP) has demanded an election to test the Government’s popularity.
A determined Minister Basil Rajapaksa, the strategist of the SLPP, said he wants to go for an election sooner rather than later. “I have a plan to go for elections soon,” the Minister said. “The only election we can hold is the Local Government,” he said.