More development projects for Hambantota

President of the 'Tharunyata Hetak' organisation and UPFA candidate from the Hambantota district for the general election, Namal Rajapaksa said 27 factories would be established within the next year in Hambantota.

Rajapaksa was addressing a UPFA meeting at the weekly fair at Ranna, Hambantota recently.

He said: "Development activities have already been launched at a mega scale in the Hambantota district.

"Apart from these development projects, an international cricket stadium and a swimming pool are aslo expected to be completed within the next few months".

Minister of Export Development and International Trade, Prof. G. L. Peiris told the meeting that the best indicator of any country's economic progress was the per capita income which in Sri Lanka's case, had now risen to US$ 2200 from a mere US$ 1000 four years earlier. It had taken 15 years for previous governments to achieve even that target. It was all the more creditable as this steep increase had been achieved while the country was embroiled in a vicious military conflict.

The President had already taken meaningful steps to improve technology through programs such as Gama Neguma, Gami Diriya, Uthuru Wasanthaya, Neganahira Udanaya, and Nena Sala.

On the need for changes to the electoral system, Prof. Peiris said that there was an unprecedented need to change the present electoral system that was extremely expensive for everybody and that bred division and violence even within the same political party.

Minister of Transport Dullas Alahapperuma told the meeting that UNPers had already given up on the election and the JVP had embraced Sarath Fonseka in place of their Marxism, which in turn had driven them to a fight for preferences, something they shunned earlier. He said when President Rajapaksa entered office, there were only 182 school buses while now it had been increased to 644.

He said that by 2011, they intended increasing it to 1000.

Minister of Waterworks Mahinda Amaraweera said Tangalle has now become the only town in Sri Lanka devoid of slums and with all urban facilities such as carpeted roads, pipe-borne water and electricity and now this kind of development was being expanded into other areas of the district.