COLOMBO: Sri Lankan President Maithripala Sirisena on Sunday told his detractors and Doubting Thomases that the National Unity government will stay to fulfill the mandate it received two years ago on this day.
He further said that he is not worried about statements or actions of those who are wanting to topple the government this year.
Speaking at a colorful function held at the Bandaranaike Memorial International Conference Hall (BMICH) to mark the second anniversary of his Presidency, Sirisena said that people voted him to power to restore democracy, media freedom, bring about ethnic reconciliation, draft a new constitution, lift the economy from the depths of indebtedness, and improve relations with the international community by following a non-aligned foreign policy.
He acknowledged that people are asking him what he has done in the last two years and said that while the openly hostile ones are declaring that they will topple the government, some in his midst have developed doubts about their own electoral fortunes if they stay on with the government.
But he asserted that his government has many critical achievements to its credit.
It has, first of all, restored media freedom and pointed out that not a single journalist has been killed in the middle of the street in the last two years (referring to the assassination of Sunday Leader editor Lasantha Wickramatunge on a road).
The 18th Amendment, which had given draconian powers to the President, was repealed and replaced by the 19th Amendment which set up the Independent Commissions to depoliticize the administration.
The government has restored the economy by taking measures to relieve it from the burden of crushing loans and got foreign investments. Above all, it is working on a new constitution to establish democracy and bring about ethnic reconciliation.
But he noted that the opposition is spreading falsehoods saying that the new constitution will divide the country and that Buddhism will lose its pre-eminent position.Doubting Thomases within his own group have developed doubts about their own electoral future three years hence.
He appealed to these elements not to indulge in scaremongering and said that he will never change the unitary character of the country. He appealed to the doubters in his midst and also the opponents, not to give importance to their electoral fortunes but concentrate on putting the country back on its feet by supporting the government.
He recalled that under the Rajapaksa government, the economy was in tatters and ethnic relations were at the lowest ebb inviting international censure. It was in order to get out of this conundrum that Rajapaksa took the unprecedented step of seeking a fresh mandate two years before time.
Today, the government is in the process of bringing about reconciliation and all countries and international funding institutions are backing it as the government is truly non-aligned and friendly to all.
Sirisena assured that the government has not signed the alleged deal with China for the management of the Hambantota port nor has it sold any land to foreigners as the opposition alleges.
The Chief Guest at the second-anniversary function was the Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu who delineated the steps he had taken to modernize his administration with IT solutions and other forms of modern technology. He offered to help Sri Lanka in the use IT and agriculture and proposed that Sri Lanka guides Andhra Pradesh as to how it can improve health, education, and tourism.
Referring to the idea behind inviting distinguished Indians to be the Chief Guest on two consecutive anniversaries, President Sirisena said that inviting Indians only reflected the exceptionally close ties between Sri Lanka and India.
“Relations with India are not based on agreements but on religion and culture,” he said.
Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe said that Sri Lanka and India were closely tied in ancient times and cited the case of a Pallava king and an Anuradhapura monarch cooperating with each other to meet Chalukyan and Pandyan aggression.
The Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister underlined the fact that the new capital of the state, Amaravathi, was a famous center of Buddhism and the home of the First Century AD Buddhist philosopher Nagarjuna.