The Hon. Muhammad Faizal

¶ 01 Bismillahir Rahmanir Rahim. Assalamu Alaikum, Ayubowan, Vanakkam!

¶ 02 Hon. Presiding Member, whatever others say, the National People’s Power Government is advancing day by day while the Opposition weakens. Past governments increased people’s burdens. In the one year our Government has been in office, we have delivered more services to the people, including through the Ministry of Transport and Highways.

¶ 03 In 2022, Sri Lanka faced a severe economic crisis, followed by another: after 6.9 million voters who backed former President Gotabaya Rajapaksa ousted him, the interim Presidential vote in Parliament elected Ranil Wickremesinghe with SLPP support, defeating Dallas Alahapperuma and the then Opposition Leader Anura Kumara Dissanayake. Some could not even contest. We, with only three representatives then, still contested courageously.

¶ 04 That Ranil–Rajapaksa arrangement borrowed heavily, increasing the cost of living. Some now claim our party burned buses and houses then—but their government was in power and failed to find the culprits, while paying out massive compensation, wasting public funds.

¶ 05 In earlier governments, when wild elephants damaged homes and killed people, it was widely reported. Yet those who took crores alleging their houses were burnt did not rebuild houses for those victims. Our Government is implementing elephant fencing and protection properly.

¶ 06 They shout to open the Puttalam–Mannar road, yet the Mee Oya bridge there had been broken for five years. Though a temporary bailey fitting was provided earlier, our Ministry allocated Rs. 375 million and began full rehabilitation last month. In Puttalam, 9 km of the 45 km Bathulu Oya–Karambai road is already rehabilitated; approval has been granted for the remainder. Through the Ministry of Transport, Highways, Ports and Civil Aviation, many roads, rural roads, and bridges are being rehabilitated, and people’s needs are being met. Thank you.