SILMIYA YOUSUF
COLOMBO – “ We have always respected the rule of law in public administration. Public servants can perform their duties without fear. When I came to power I did not politicize any appointment. Appointments were made based on merit. That justice was done at the highest level in the appointment of judges to the Courts and in the appointment of the Attorney General,” said President Gotabaya Rajapaksa in his address to the nation on Friday, June 25 in Colombo.
President Rajapaksa spoke for one hour and 15 mts in his speech relayed and telecast in all the channels.
In a pre-recorded message, the president further said : “ Covid-19 global pandemic is the most serious challenge at this juncture not only for our country but also for each and every country irrespective of their development status. About 180 million people worldwide have contracted the virus while nearly 3.9 million people have died from it so far.
The developed countries, which initially suffered severely from coronavirus, have largely contained the risk of virus spread today since the majority of the population has been vaccinated. Although some vaccine-producing countries have easy access to the vaccine, there are others that have so far failed to secure any vaccine to their people.
I took special efforts in the recent past to bring down vaccines to Sri Lanka. I personally spoke to the Heads of State in countries like China and India. I also made requests by letters. I personally wrote letters to the Heads of State of Russia and other countries. We held discussions with vaccine-producing countries through our Foreign Ministry and through the Ambassadors and High Commissioners. Our officials coordinated with vaccine manufacturing companies.
All these efforts were made because I wanted to vaccinate all the people in our country.
As a result of these efforts, the country is now receiving a large number of vaccines that we need on a monthly basis. We only use the vaccines approved by the World Health Organisation (WHO).
So far, we have received 1,264,000 doses of AstraZeneca vaccine, 3.1 million Sinopharm vaccine doses, and 130,000 doses of Sputnik V vaccine. Altogether, we have received a total of 4,494,000 vaccine doses.
At present, the vaccination drive is being carried out successfully in all provinces of the country.
We have been given another opportunity to correct past mistakes and move forward. We can only prosper if we work hard with a proper plan. When history is written, it will mention the hard times we are now in. But amidst those difficulties, it is up to us to decide whether we will succeed or not.
When I contested the Presidential election, many of my supporters asked me to take the leadership placing the country as their priority. They did not make personal requests from me. But after I came to power, some people were angry with the government for not fulfilling their personal demands. They are now criticizing the government. They are in an attempt to spread that the government is a failure, in order to discredit it. What I want is not to change my policies to please a few, but to implement the Vistas of Prosperity as I promised.
I am ready to lead you today as I did then. I will fulfill my responsibility without failure. I believe that the wise people who love the country and are ready to take responsibility for future generations will continue to support me and my government in achieving our goals,” the president stressed.
