The Hon. Padmasiri Bandara

¶ 01 Hon. Presiding Member, today we consider Regulations under the Imports and Exports (Control) Act, No. 1 of 1969, and proposals under the Disposals Act, No. 34 of 2023. But today’s “topic” has become salt. The Opposition has no other subject. To those who ruled for 76 years: salt is perishable and seasonal—did you ever build a secure storage facility for salt over 70 years? No. Yet you shout today.

¶ 02 Some in the Opposition try to lecture us about the JVP/NPP. We are not a split group; we are one team bound in comradeship—working from one standpoint. Don’t teach us politics.

¶ 03 Rajapaksas now cry loudly that the term “war hero” was not used. We saw what they did to a war leader—dragged him by the legs to prison. We will not do that. When someone performs a noble task, we will honor them honestly; we won’t curry favor when close and jail them when opposed. At our War Heroes Felicitation we invited all to the stage and honored both fallen and living heroes.

¶ 04 They also cry that 1,400 jobs in a garment factory were lost. But it was you who shut down most local industries over decades: knife-making, parts of the salt industry, and textile mills. When we were schoolchildren, we were taken to see paper mills and textile plants. Now gone—closed by those who ruled for 76 years. Do not ask us to fix in six months what you broke for decades. We have four and a half years. Judge us then. We will not sell national assets.

¶ 05 You made a big outcry about fertilizer and eggs; when we find solutions, you switch topics. If we cannot do this, we will go home before five years are up. But we say: those who ruled for 76 years destroyed domestic industry, sold to foreign companies for personal gain. Please stop stoking panic.

¶ 06 You called Minister Sunil Handunnetti a thief. We know who stole since 1977—cleverly. We are searching and will bring them to book. Hon. Sunil Handunnetti is not a thief; he is a patriotic leader committed to building one, unitary Sri Lanka free of communalism.

¶ 07 You ruined cooperatives and tried to sell Sathosa. Now we must listen to lectures from those very people. Keep talking about salt, coconuts, eggs, and rice—the people’s verdict has not cooled since the election. Even if another election came in a month, the result would be the same. Understand the people’s mind and act accordingly. I conclude.