The UNP’s next generation of leaders are being groomed to take the party forward and formulate a plan for Sri Lanka till 2030, Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe announced.
Addressing the 72nd anniversary celebrations of the UNP held at its headquarters in Sirikotha on Thursday (6), the Prime Minister stressed, it is important to strengthen the party from the village level.
“We did everything for the sake of the country; to build the country. We are continuing our mission to hand over an economy that can pay off debts, and not hand over a debt-ridden economy to the next generation, by 2025,” Wickremesinghe said.
Comparing Sri Lanka to a paddy field the Prime Minister said, they took over the country in 2015 knowing its true status.
In order to solve the issues that Sri Lanka faced, as a debt hit paddy field, he said, we took over the governance of the country not as a UNP government but as a National Government.
“It came to a point to sell this paddy field as a result of the heavy loans. The former owners of this paddy field fled during this situation,” the Prime Minister said.
He added, they had to further face the hardships of loans, floods and droughts but continued to tend to the ‘paddy field’ and now it is time for harvesting.
Pointing out the accomplishments of the Government, he elaborated, they were able to regain the GSP+ preference, increase funds for university students from Rs. 2,000 to Rs. 5,000, introduce an emergency ambulance service along with an insurance scheme for all schoolchildren, and encouraged women's involvement in politics.
Speaking about the Joint Opposition’s Janabalaya Colombata rally, that was held the day before the UNP’s anniversary,Wickremesinghe asked the gathering how can a party that fails to organize a successful protest, lead a nation.
“The ‘flower bud’ does not have people’s power (Jana Balaya), and the media does not have the power of lies (Pacha Balaya),” he declared, adding that what remained at the end of that was the UNP’s 72nd anniversary celebrations.
He said it was now time to proceed as a unity government and achieve stability in the country.