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Ministers hide when discussing rice prices, says opposition leader
🇱🇰 Sri Lanka /Elections & Politics

Ministers hide when discussing rice prices, says opposition leader

From Lankadeepa · () Sinhala

Translated from Sinhala, summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.

At a glance

News Named sources Context piece
  • Opposition leader Sajith Premadasa criticized the government for failing to provide timely answers to the country's issues, particularly regarding rice prices.
  • He accused ministers of abandoning farmers by proposing a guaranteed price of 120 rupees per kilogram of rice, despite production costs of 137 rupees.
  • Premadasa called for a public statement on the guaranteed price and noted that ministers avoid discussing rice prices when questioned.

Opposition leader Sajith Premadasa asserted in parliament that the government is incapable of providing proper answers to the nation's problems, particularly concerning the price of rice. He accused government ministers of deliberately harming farmers by proposing a guaranteed price of 120 rupees per kilogram, a move that comes despite production costs of 137 rupees per kilogram.

Ministers hide when talking about the price of rice today.

— Sajith PremadasaOpposition leader criticizing the government's stance on agricultural prices in parliament.

Premadasa recalled that ministers, when in opposition, had promised to make farmers "kings" and spoke of their hardships. He contrasted this with the current situation, where he claimed farmers are being called "kasippu" (a term often associated with illicit liquor sellers), questioning why the farming community is being left in such a state.

The government has proven that it is incapable of providing proper answers to the country's problems.

— Sajith PremadasaOpposition leader's assessment of the government's performance in parliament.

He challenged the agriculture minister to make a public statement regarding the guaranteed price for rice, highlighting that ministers now evade discussions on the matter. "Ministers hide when talking about the price of rice today," Premadasa stated, adding that they cover the lenses of journalists' cameras. He concluded that this evasion represents the government's response to farmers' issues.

Today, government ministers, who once went to the fields and ate harvested grain, promised a guaranteed price of 150 rupees per kilogram of rice. Today, the government is proposing to give a guaranteed price of 120, deliberately causing loss to the farmer.

— Sajith PremadasaRecalling past promises versus current government proposals on rice prices.
DistantNews Editorial

Originally published by Lankadeepa in Sinhala. Translated, summarized, and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.

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