Postpone Port City Bill debate, go for country-wide lockdown: SJB urges Govt.

The opposition party, the Samagi Jana Balawegaya (SJB) urged the government to postpone the debate on Port City Economic Commission Bill and to go for a complete lockdown.

SJB parliamentarian and Leader of Tamil Progressive Alliance (TPA) Mano Ganesan told a press conference that the government should stop all development work and divert its funds to arrest the COVID pandemic.

“The Government should go for a lockdown and give top priority to arrest the COVID spread. Seeking Parliament’s approval can be done for the Port City Economic Commission Bill later,” Mr. Ganesan stressed.

“Priority number one, two and three of the government should be to save the nation and its people from the marauding pandemic. The only difference in the pandemic situation in Sri Lanka compared to India is that you don’t see people fall and die on the roads,” he added.

Quoting the research done with the involvement of the University of Washington, MP Ganeshan said 2,000 people would die in a month in Sri Lanka if the pandemic is not controlled by June this year.

“Therefore we urge the government to go for an island-wide lockdown and divert funds to provide Rs. 5,000 for every needy family on a weekly basis. The Sri Lankan President shouldn't become another Narendra Modi and make similar mistakes. Prime Minister Modi constructed a cricket stadium and allowed the India-Sri Lanka match to go ahead, allowed the Kumba Mela festival and then held elections in five states. It was these mistakes that led to the surge in the pandemic in India,” he said.

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