The Hon. Naina Thambi Marrikkar Mohamed Thahir

¶ 01 Madam Presiding Member, I thank you for the opportunity to speak during the debate on the Economic Review issued by the Central Bank of Sri Lanka. We all want the country’s economy to be strengthened, and we should be happy as Sri Lankans if that happens. When numbers are cited here, we too are compelled to speak with numbers.

¶ 02 When this government assumed office there was no economic crisis. The crisis existed during Gotabaya Rajapaksa’s time, coupled with the COVID-19 pandemic. But once Ranil Wickremesinghe became President, the fuel issue, the fertilizer issue—these were resolved. Then you took over the government. When you took over, bank debt could exist—that is normal—but there was no restraint. Now figures are being tossed around. The 225 of us can debate here, but the people of the country know the facts. There are 22 million people in our country. Go to the villages and ask them the present situation. What is the current price of a bag of fertilizer? What is the price of milk powder? What is the price of fuel? Compare the prices when you took office with the present. Then you will understand. Rather than government and opposition arguing here, go to the villages and see the reality.

¶ 03 We should not make baseless accusations. If the economy is strengthening, we are honestly happy. That is desirable, and as public representatives we believe in that. But responding from the government side only with numbers to what the opposition raises will not do. There was indeed an economic crisis, and it has worsened. You said the dollar would be at 290–300; now it has jumped beyond 340. How then is the economy improving?

¶ 04 On the 15th, LCs have been opened for importing 4,000 vehicles. When those are paid in rupees, the value of the dollar rises. If 4,000 LCs are opened at once, how do you control the dollar? The innocent poor do not buy these vehicles. Daily wage earners do not buy vehicles. By giving an opportunity to those with money to import vehicles, the dollar shot up. That is the truth.

¶ 05 For 76 years, this country has had various leaders: D. S. Senanayake, Dudley Senanayake, Sirimavo Bandaranaike, S. W. R. D. Bandaranaike, J. R. Jayewardene, R. Premadasa, Chandrika Kumaratunga, Mahinda Rajapaksa, Maithripala Sirisena, Gotabaya Rajapaksa, and at present Anura Kumara Dissanayake as President. Every leader made some change. We do not deny that. But instead of chanting about a 76-year curse, we must now rebuild the country anew. There have been crises: the Che Guevara period, 1983, 1988–89 JVP. These come from time to time. We should not keep pointing; we should forget past blame and all of us must unite to rebuild the country—honestly, without attacking each other.

¶ 06 Madam Presiding Member, I represent Puttalam. Puttalam was severely flooded. Today an emergency prevails. The town is a low-lying area. When water flows down from the highlands, areas around Puttalam town such as Palaviya, Pillaiyadiya, and Madurankuliya were completely inundated. Due to the recent rains across Sri Lanka, Puttalam suffered heavy losses. An urgent solution is needed. This problem has existed for years before this government came. There are no proper canals, and when water is suddenly released from dams under projects like Inginiyimitiya etc., it rushes in; you would have seen on TV that when water is opened at once, it floods school buildings, the Kachcheri, and all buildings. The canal and drain systems are not properly built. Please fix them; we will extend our full support. Even as opposition, we need not come; as the government, you should fix them. This belongs to the people. Do not just cite numbers and make claims; the people do not expect that. Immediate solutions must be provided at the time of crisis, instead of later claiming how much was spent. The people’s needs must be met then and there.

¶ 07 You speak of the economy, but how much damage does flooding do to the economy? In Puttalam, salt pans are ruined, prawn farms are gone, and daily farmers are finished. An urgent solution is necessary.