The Hon. Najith Indika

¶ 01 Madam Presiding Member, as a newcomer, I listened closely over the past two days. Many Opposition seniors spoke as if our political history were only two weeks long. This is a new Government that took office amid immense challenges, and the President presented the plan to move forward.

¶ 02 This is my maiden speech. I was born and raised in Ranna, Tangalle, Hambantota District. My first memory of elections was parents closing doors on polling day because armed thugs roamed, bussed into polling stations to stuff ballots, while ordinary people stayed indoors. I also grew up under political repression: activists and journalists were killed or disappeared; comrades abducted; student activists murdered. In the immediate past two years after Mr. Ranil Wickremesinghe assumed the Presidency from this very Chamber, the country functioned without an IGP, without a Chief Justice being appointed, and elections were postponed and mocked. We take over the country from that state.

¶ 03 Within just a few weeks—with one President and three Ministers—we began restoring the rule of law. That itself is a victory. An Opposition Party Leader claimed we have accepted their positions. We have not; nor have the people, as proved by two successive elections. They said the same things on the trail—and the people gave us 6.8 million votes and 159 seats, a record majority of 4.9 million.

¶ 04 They also spread vile predictions: that if NPP won, there would be bloodbaths; the last Poya would pass; the Dalada Perahera and Katina would be stopped; Muslim brothers would be forced to shave beards. Party leaders said these things. Today, they speak as if they never said them—without remorse or self-criticism. Politics needs introspection and accountability.

¶ 05 I am a medical doctor, and many here did not plan politics as a career; we are professionals who chose to stay and fix the country rather than flee like many did under the collapse of the past 76 years. That is why we talk about those 76 years—not as rhetoric, but because we must repair the damage.

¶ 06 Some suggested our mandate rests only on certain minority parties’ backing. That is their right to decide, but the final people’s verdict is clear: we won Jaffna, the East, the West, and the South. As the famous song says, “South, East, West, and North under one flag.” For the first time, the NPP truly brought all four corners under one standard—hence our emphasis on rejecting nationalism.

¶ 07 Finally, let me quote the President’s policy statement: “We need a State where law, justice, and fairness prevail. If we cannot establish such a State within this mandate, there is no point dreaming of it anymore. Within this mandate dwell the cries of those whose kin were killed, and the anguish of their friends. If we do not deliver justice and fairness, who will? To whom shall we entrust it? If we fail, the people’s dreams of justice will die.” Representing 159 seats, none of us will let the people’s dreams die. Over the next five years, we will fully implement our programme.

¶ 08 Thank you, Madam Presiding Member.