The Hon. G.G. Ponnambalam

¶ 01 Hon. Presiding Member, on 29 September 2025, the Zonal Director of Education, Kilinochchi South, wrote to the Principal of Konavil Maha Vidyalaya regarding the 2024 sports meet, seeking details about the Kurinji House entrance designed to depict the Tamil homeland area and about an arch resembling the entrance of a martyrs’ resting place, and asked for details of teachers and students responsible. The Terrorism Investigation Division (TID) is involved. This is today’s reality.

¶ 02 This government promised to repeal the PTA before end-September. The government has also allowed commemorations of those who died in the war. In such commemorations, arches resembling thuyilum illam entrances are common and still stand in many places. Many students have lost parents in the war. Creating a house entrance resembling such motifs during a school sports meet should not invite the TID to demand student details. If this is the state of affairs, what is the point in trusting the government?

¶ 03 Hon. Bimal Rathnayake visited Jaffna on 30 March and said in Tamil “We do not lie,” promising to complete the second phase of Palaly Airport within six months. Six months have passed, and not even commencement has been taken seriously, let alone completion. Phase 2 is merely resurfacing the existing 75m x 2,300m runway—no land acquisition needed; financing available—yet nothing moved. A year into office, you cannot keep saying “we just came.” Meanwhile you allocated Rs. 3 billion to upgrade Ratmalana Airport, got Cabinet approval, called tenders, and awarded to Sunken Construction (Pvt) Ltd.

¶ 04 Jaffna’s international airport is effectively limited to small prop planes; at best one or two weekly India runs; 15 kg baggage limits. You rush Ratmalana but do not prioritize Palaly. Are there no urgent needs in the North? After 76 years of waiting, we still must wait?

¶ 05 This government acts to preserve its vote bank. It knows it cannot easily deceive the North now, so it channels resources to where votes can be harvested, neglecting North and East promises. On 1 September, the President came to Jaffna to open a passport office and publicly promised to release all private lands under the military. Yet reports say the army is building a hospital on five acres of private land east of Palaly Road, belonging to five individuals and the Vasaavilaan–Manthuvil Pillaiyar Temple. Illegal construction is proceeding. Promises are made to Geneva and elsewhere, but not delivered.

¶ 06 Take Thayyiddy Vihara: built entirely on private lands; everyone knows. The army, under then Commander Shavendra Silva, illegally seized private lands so the vihara land could abut the site and constructed it, even after officials and MPs demanded it be stopped. The area was declared High Security and construction proceeded in secrecy. Does the government not know? Have you treated it as an illegal act and remedied it? No. Instead, when the President visited Jaffna, that very monk was invited and honoured. How does that look to dispossessed Tamil owners?

¶ 07 For Tamil people, this is your last chance. For 76 years, alternating governments deceived us. Now, a different force came to power saying it rejects racism. The first year is when you can take hard decisions that people will accept. If you fail now on key North-East issues, soon you will be unable to act at all—by your own making.