The Hon. Sajith Premadasa — Leader of the Opposition

¶ 01 Hon. Speaker, I wish to raise several points regarding the present situation in the country. Owing to the cyclone and heavy rainfall, a large number of our people have been affected; there have been many fatalities; there are displacements; houses and property have been damaged. Further, many people are trapped in about 580 locations.

¶ 02 What must now be done is to implement urgent measures to rescue people swiftly from their current difficult circumstances. We must all unite to rescue our people. We extend our full support to a coordinated programme.

¶ 03 I especially request the health services, disaster management units, district secretariats and divisional secretariats to expedite the dispatch of necessary supplies, and to provide boats to the trapped locations. We have received reports that people in many places are stranded. Boats must be sent urgently to evacuate them. Immediate special relief must be extended to those affected by landslides.

¶ 04 I also appeal to the public to follow the instructions issued by State officials in high-risk areas as that is essential to save lives.

¶ 05 There are widespread power outages; numerous landslides; many trees have fallen. The necessary allocations, equipment and machinery—such as dozers and backhoes—must be supplied. Our officials, the Tri-Forces, Police and Civil Security Department are already engaged, and we must further strengthen the effort to safeguard lives. We will discharge our responsibilities accordingly.

¶ 06 I further request that higher financial allocations be dispatched swiftly to the relevant institutions. We hope this request will be granted.