Prime Minister (PM) Harini Amarasuriya assured Parliament that the government is committed to maintaining the uninterrupted operation of essential services, public utilities, and industries despite the ongoing national crisis.
She urged the opposition to support the government's efforts to fulfill promises made for public welfare, according to the Prime Minister’s Media Division.
Responding to a question from Member of Parliament V. Radhakrishnan, the Prime Minister highlighted issues within the education sector, particularly concerning the estate community, where teacher shortages remain a significant concern. She stated that over 23,000 teachers have been recruited to fill vacancies in accordance with court directives.
The government is engaging in district-level discussions within the Ministry of Education to address these issues and implement prompt solutions.
In her address, the Prime Minister underscored the country's recent turbulent journey, noting that after surviving a global pandemic, an economic downturn, and a political crisis, Sri Lanka had just begun to recover when new challenges emerged. She criticized the opposition for attempting to topple the government for political gain, accusing them of spreading fear and undermining governance and diplomatic relations.
“The opposition's efforts seem aimed at seizing power through any means rather than earning public trust through democratic elections,” she said. “They are now conspiring to overthrow a democratically elected government to evade accountability for past misgovernance, which contributed to the country’s economic instability.”
She emphasised that the opposition's actions are only worsening the crisis and warned that some statements are damaging diplomatic ties. The Prime Minister called on the opposition to pursue power through democratic channels by convincing the public in elections.
Addressing the current fuel crisis, she clarified that it is a consequence of the global conflict rather than government failure. She pointed out that within just twenty days of the Middle East conflict, the government made several strategic decisions, leading to one of the lowest fuel price revisions in South Asia.
Further, she explained that a QR code system was introduced to manage fuel consumption more effectively and that efforts are ongoing to streamline this process and prevent irregularities.
Despite the difficulties, the government remains focused on ensuring the continuous operation of critical services and industries. She appealed to the opposition to support the government’s efforts and uphold their promises to the people during these challenging times.