The Hon. Kaveenthiran Kodeeswaran

¶ 01 [6.10 p.m.]

¶ 02 Hon. Presiding Member, I second the motion moved by the Hon. Shanakiyan Rasamanickam.

¶ 03 A bar has been set up in Periya Nilavanai where the people are continuously protesting against it. During the last presidential election, the current President said he would abolish such liquor shops, and later said if his party achieved a larger majority in Parliament, he would abolish new ones.

¶ 04 The President has ample executive authority to cancel newly granted permits—these can be cancelled via notices in the Gazette. Liquor shops cause severe social and intergenerational harm. If bars are to be allowed, place them in proper tourist zones, not in poor residential areas where they devastate fragile household economies, causing family strife and harming students. With a two‑thirds majority, the Government can easily cancel recently issued permits—both the President and Parliament have the authority to stop this. Therefore, I urge cancellation not only in Nilavanai but also of all unnecessarily established liquor shop permits in Tamil and Sinhala areas alike. Thank you.