Ranil pledges provincial development boards for the North and East

Asks Tamils not to change their voting pattern

By Yohan Perera in Jaffna  

President Ranil Wickremesinghe pledged to set up provincial development boards to take charge of developments in the North and the East..  

Speaking during an election rally in the North, President Wickremesinghe said the provincial development board will take charge of development in the Northern Province. These development boards will have to work closely with the Central Government.  

Also he pledged to activate provincial councils and local bodies in the provinces as well.  Further the President requested the people in the North not to change the voting pattern they have maintained for decades.  

Mr. Wickremesinghe was responding to the remark made by National People’s Power (NPP) candidate Anura Kumara Dissanayake who told the Northern people to follow the same pattern followed by the people in the South.    “You voted for Sarath Fonseka in 2010 while people in the South voted for Mahinda Rajapaksa but nothing happened to you. You voted for Maithripala Sirisena in 2015 while the Southern people voted for Mahinda Rajapaksa. However nothing has happened to you. You voted for Sajith in 2019 but the Southern people voted for Gotabaya Rajapaksa. However Gotabaya Rajapaksa did not harass you. Keep up with this pattern and I’ll guarantee that nothing will happen to you,” he said. 
  
“Anura Dissanayake should tender an apology to the Northern people for inflicting undue influence on the Tamils while he should apologize to the Sinhalese people for bringing disrepute to them. Also don’t waste your franchise and therefore do not vote for Sajith either,” he added.   

Meanwhile Minister Nimal Siripala de Silva pledged air and sea connectivity with India through  the KKS port and Palali Airport.