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SJB Leader Sajith Premadasa - Pic by Nimalsiri Edirisinghe
Samagi Jana Balawegaya (SJB) Leader Sajith Premadasa yesterday promised to herald in prosperity for everyone through a national revolution led by the party.
Addressing the party’s labour day rally, Premadasa who is also the Opposition Leader said the SJB will commence visiting the grassroots covering the entire island and launch a revolution commencing on 16 June.
“We will cover all the electoral seats in the country,” he said. Premadasa and many leaders of the party attended the rally held in Colombo at the A.E. Gunasinghe Ground in Colombo while another rally organised by the party was held in Badulla led by SJB MP Vadivel Suresh. Premadasa said it was a historical event as the SJB has become the only party to hold two May Day rallies on the same day.
Premadasa said the SJB intends to oust the current Government which is shadowed by the Rajapaksas through this national revolution. He also said a future SJB Government will ensure it renegotiates the IMF agreement. “We will negotiate it to obtain an IMF agreement that has more people-friendly reforms,” he noted. The Opposition Leader said the party will take steps to gather the people around the Samagi Pavura National Program to rid the people of this Government that is spineless and afraid of polls. Premadasa promised to protect the social welfare state under an SJB Government.
“Contraction of the economy and burdening the people with unbearable taxes is not the SJB policy,” he said, adding that the SJB will not allow for the collapse of the stock market, banking system or the economy. “Our policy is Sri Lanka first. We will commence a revolution to rebuild the country,” Premadasa said.
The Opposition Leader also took the opportunity to send a message to rebels within the party. “We engage in politics to not obtain positions. It is to change the system. We are not a group of public representatives who are greedy for such things. However, there are those who are,” Premadasa said. He asked such members who have a foot in both camps to not double cross the party and leave instead.