The Hon. Ramalingam Chandrasekar - Minister of Fisheries, Aquatic and Ocean Resources

¶ 01 Thank you, Hon. Deputy Speaker.

¶ 02 I am pleased to speak on the National People’s Power Government’s Budget. On the 17th, the Hon. President addressed this House for over two hours, deeply and meaningfully setting out the vision of the Budget: what we intend to do, why the country declined, and how we will revive it. The debate on that speech has gone on for five days.

¶ 03 Listening to the Opposition, one wonders if they have just awoken from deep sleep. It is well known the country had collapsed economically, politically, and socially. On 12 April 2022, the country was declared bankrupt, and before that, nationwide paralysis occurred due to the crisis. It was in such a state that the country was handed to us.

¶ 04 Therefore, the President’s speech and this Budget are historically significant because, in September and November last year, people across the country—Tamil, Sinhala, Muslim; North, South, East, West—voted together for change and elected us. That is the root cause and the mandate.

¶ 05 Our task is not to keep listing their faults but to build the country entrusted to us. Particularly, the North and East gave us unprecedented victories, with Jaffna delivering a historic turning point—handing us full control of the district—ending what was thought immutable. Likewise in Vanni, the Eastern Province, the hill country, and elsewhere. The Tamil-majority areas that some thought their ancestral property have taught them a lesson and entrusted the mandate to us.

¶ 06 As Minister of Fisheries, Aquatic and Ocean Resources, and as Jaffna District Coordinating Committee Chairman representing the Northern Province, I bear a heavy responsibility to create a new era for fisherfolk in the North and East. Our ministry’s operations, like much else, had decayed. For three months we have worked day and night to reorganize, stabilize, and redirect it appropriately, and we have achieved satisfactory progress.

¶ 07 We must fulfill our election pledges. Poverty grips the country; many suffer hunger. Previously, 25.2% lived below the poverty line on less than Rs. 17,000. The Central Bank says a family of four needs over Rs. 90,000. Our key aim is to lift people from poverty. Today, the Northern Province has the highest poverty, with Mullaitivu and Kilinochchi at the top. Therefore, our allocations will push funds to villages—prioritizing schools, roads, tanks, and village infrastructure—so that we can raise living standards. Without eradicating poverty, we cannot achieve national progress. Poverty is intertwined with educational backwardness and drug abuse among youth. By tackling poverty, we can address these too.

¶ 08 This Budget is for all—Tamil, Sinhala, Muslim; North, East, and everywhere—to take a step toward a future where people can smile. Thank you.