The Hon. Aboobucker Athambawa

¶ 01 Bismillahir Rahmanir Rahim.

¶ 02 Hon. Deputy Chairperson of Committees, I thank Almighty God for this opportunity, and I thank the people of Digamadulla—Kalmunai, Sammanthurai, Pottuvil and Ampara—for electing me. I also thank the National People’s Power for their support.

¶ 03 Natural disasters occur from time to time and often affect Ampara, Batticaloa and Trincomalee. Ampara, where I live, is a beautiful, resource-rich district, advanced in agriculture, providing paddy, maize and other grains to the nation. In fisheries, including inland fisheries and deep sea, about 15,000 families are engaged. Education is strong, with the South Eastern University at Oluvil; many households have more than one graduate. Tourism thrives with Arugam Bay, famous worldwide. Ampara is rich in minerals, trade and cottage industries, including renowned weaving in Maruthamunai.

¶ 04 Due to climate change, heavy rains arrive with the Northeast monsoon in November–January, providing Maha-season water for paddy. This time excessive rainfall caused flooding, damaging infrastructure and causing significant economic losses and loss of life.

¶ 05 In Ampara, eight lives were lost—six madrasa students and two civilians. We extend deep condolences. As NPP MPs, we visited the affected areas and are speaking today so that such disasters are mitigated in future.

¶ 06 For 76 years many parties, including ethnic-based parties from our regions, have been in power or allied to power. What did they deliver to our areas? Many “development” works were poorly executed. Today, Oluvil harbour is unusable. The area has about 450 deep-sea vessels and over 1,500 smaller boats. In December–January, due to sea hazards, fishers must move boats and gear elsewhere, causing losses.

¶ 07 The floods damaged local infrastructure—roads, culverts, bridges, drainage, bunds and anicuts. We NPP MPs visited and met the people, who asked for compensation. Our Government is prepared to provide it. Many houses were partially or fully damaged; we assured compensation would be provided.

¶ 08 We are coordinating with the District Secretary and Divisional Secretaries to expedite assistance through departmental heads. In the past, because of ethnic, religious and political agendas, development and funds were misused; now, even a week after the disaster, people still await compensation. We have taken decisions within our party structures to ensure quick delivery.

¶ 09 In Mawadippalli, students and civilians were affected; we thank the Sainthamaruthu Janaza Welfare Society, Maligakadu Janaza Welfare Society, Kalmunai Swimmers, Karaitivu fishermen, the tri-forces, and especially madrasa organizations who cooked and provided meals to IDPs. Thank you for the opportunity.