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| Sunday, 31 July 2005 |
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UNP should be defeated - Anura
Kurunegala District Parliamentarian and JVP Politburo member Anura Kumara Dissanayake was interviewed by Deepal Warnakulasuriya of the Sunday Observer. He speaks on the present political situation of the country and the Post-Tsunami Operational Management Structure (P-TOMS) in his interview. He was the former Agriculture, Livestock, Lands and Irrigation Minister of the Alliance Government. Here are the excerpts. Question: How do you detail the JVP's political activities at present? Answer: It is 57 years after independence and throughout these years the country has been ruled by persons from several feudal families. Although the time period was more than enough to create and draft a vision to strengthen the country's economy and solve its political, social and cultural problems, all that the rulers who ruled the country have done is only creating more problems. The reason may be that they had not really understood the aspirations of the masses who live beyond the city of Colombo. In such a situation the JVP believes that the country needs an alternative national leadership and also works to realise that requirement. Q: How do you feel the difference when serving the public as a minister and just as a parliamentarian? A: The People's Liberation Front is bound to serve the masses who had no access to resources. Both the major parties were not capable of realising their woes while the innocent rural masses suffered with numerous problems. How we serve the public is not important, as we have been doing it without portfolios too. However, I accept that the four ministries allowed us to do something much more to the needy people. I assure you that we would be serving the people as a responsible party in the country with or without portfolios. Q: How do you analyze the government development activities and what is your opinion of the Government? A: Any government engages in development activities like road repairing, making new roads and buildings, and welfare measures. But, the problem is whether they have taken any significant step to have a strong economic policy to develop the country. However, last year's budget which criticised the open economy, rejected Liberal Capitalism and implied to the public that the government was to do something to strengthen the national economy. Has the Government taken one single step to have a strong government sector. Countries like Singapore have all major hubs like Port, Airlines, Development banks under government control. But, what's happening here now? Ceylon Electricity Board is going to be restructured. State shares of Petroleum Corporation are going to be sold out. International schools have been allowed to send their students for Government examinations. Some private institutes have been allowed to bestow degrees. School maintenance will be handed over to parents making it a burden to them. Those are the things the government is working on. I simply say that what Ranil Wickremesinghe and the UNP regime began is continued by this government. I must also add that, that is not the vision we embraced to turn the United Peoples Freedom Alliance. Q: A debate has been created in the country over the date of the next Presidential election. What is the JVP's stance over the issue? A: If President Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunga says that it is in 2006, that is wrong. When the Opposition Leader Ranil Wickremesinghe says that it is 2005 that is also wrong. Even the Elections Commissioner cannot hold elections when he wants. He has to take a decision according to the country's Constitution. If he cannot find enough reasons within his framework he should go to the Attorney-General and take a legal definition. Then he can publish his definition. Anyone who does not agree with the decision could go to the Supreme Court. That is the way it should be solved. Now, this has become a serious joke. The Opposition Leader cannot agitate against P-TOMS, CEB, Petroleum or Education related issues. The only thing he has to go on stage is for the Presidential election. Whenever the Election comes the JVP would take the right decision on time. Q: At a public meeting the JVP announced that they would present a candidate who can defeat Ranil Wickremesinghe at the next Presidential Election. Who is your candidate and is he not a JVP member? A: I must again say that Ranil Wickremesinghe should be defeated. At present he is discussing several problems like the cost of living, Tsunami reliefs, Presidential Election. But he is silent over the real problems which I mentioned earlier. If a water management act was brought he would be silent as usual. On the other hand he has not presented an alternative economic plan to develop the country, and he has not revealed whether he was coming forward at the presidential election with the `Regaining Sri Lanka plan' by which he planned to sell all the country's resources to the West according to a timetable. He is a bankrupt leader, that is why he goes behind extreme capitalistic bodies like the Democratic Professionals Body to warn the President to go for an early Presidential election. He has become a slave to the West. I stress that who would be the JVP candidate is not important, as such an election has not been called upon yet. Anyhow, he would be a patriotic person who can be trusted by all the communities who live in the country. Q: What is the JVP's stand over the P-TOMS? If anyone suggests that you stop reliefs for the tsunami affected in North and East by a Supreme Court's jurisdiction over the P-TOMS, what is your answer? A: No, I do not think so. TAFREN Chairman at an interview with a Sinhala weekly the previous week said that every problem had been solved in tsunami affected areas. According to him everything had been attended to without having the P-TOMS. He also says that the P-TOMS is another political requirement. The government earlier claimed that if there wasn't a structure like that, funds will directly go to the LTTE. However, some donor countries have already refused to assist a structure with a terrorist organisation. The Tsunami Council does not include Galle, Matara and Hambantota districts as there are no so called LTTE controlled areas in those districts. But Ampara was included without having a single Grama Niladhari Division which is controlled by the LTTE. It happened so because the Eelam map included the Ampara District. In April 2003 when they were leaving the talks table what they asked was a governing structure to develop the areas affected by the war. On October 30 the same year what they asked for was an Interim Governing Authority for the same reason. The tsunami disaster came in December 2004 and by February the LTTE again asked for a Tsunami Relief Council to assist the people affected by tsunami. Therefore, what we have got to say is that the same old requirement has come with a different name. The JVP's stand is that there is no need of any structure or council to assist the tsunami affected people. If a government cannot distribute welfare measures to the affected it was a matter of shame. By this time, affected schools, hospitals, religious places, roads and everything have been identified. Therefore, the responsible ministries can proceed with what is necessary. On the other hand we see two faults in the P-TOMS. The first is the Constitutional fault which was pointed out by the Supreme Court. The other is the Political fault. It is unforgivable and the public will decide on the punishment. Q: Does the JVP have a plan to join the Alliance again and keep the promises given to the country? A: Minister Nimal Siripala de Silva says that the JVP has no alternative except joining the Alliance. At the same time Minister Maithreepala Sirisena invites the JVP to proceed with the Alliance. I must say that we have alternatives and we have done nothing wrong to our voters as the Alliance policies are still with the JVP. The Sri Lanka Freedom Party willingly or unwillingly has taken the UNP policies and those would drive the country to disaster. Q: Allegations have been raised against your party that it left the government as it failed to reduce the Cost of Living? A: I accept that we cannot control the fuel price. But a government can think of some subsidiary. How many businessmen do not pay tax? How many malpractices are taking place at the Customs? These things should be stopped. If the country has a long-term national economic policy it would solve a number of problems. Unfortunately both the major parties have completely forgotten that responsibility to the nation. |
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