A Nation Cannot Be Run on Experimentation | Maithri Gunaratne | Turning Point

Added: 2026-05-25

[00:00:00]The government is unable to explain itself that the corruption was done by this government and this government alone. With so much of financial depreciation, 30 or 40% of the NDB is owned by the EPF. The minister had to resign.

[00:00:19]>> [music] >> Now, if you take the coal tender and the and the diesel problem there. Now, the the the most corrupt tender the most corrupt practices have taken place in this coal tender. The government is unable to explain itself.

[00:00:41]The minister had to resign. That is itself is an indictment to show that it was corrupt. Although it could not be defeated, the no-confidence motion could not be defeated in parliament, the minister had to resign because they were exposed to that extent that the corruption was done by this government and this government alone.

[00:01:05]And it is President Anura Kumara Dissanayaka who has appointed all these people who are ruining this economy and running this country down. There is absolutely no plan for production and how they are going to service the loans in 2027-2028.

[00:01:25]So, we are going back to a failed state.

[00:01:27]We are going back to a bankrupt state.

[00:01:30]Then, if you take the stock exchange, we have the most vibrant stock exchange as compared to the Bombay Stock Exchange.

[00:01:38]When you take the Colombo Stock Exchange, with so much of financial depreciation, the rupee depreciating, still our our rupee has depreciated 60%.

[00:01:50]The Indian rupee has depreciated only 10%. And if you take five companies in India and five companies in Sri Lanka, you you invest $1,000 each in each of these companies, the appreciation in the Sri Lankan stock market is much more than the Indian stock market. So, we have a very vibrant economy. We have a vibrant business sector where we can drive this country to the maximum, but with all these failures, non-performance, and incompetency, we are completely under the hands of the either IMF or the World Bank. So, this must stop. There is deflation in this country.

[00:02:33]There is so much of uh uh uh what do you call so much of conflict of interest? You take the NDB issue.

[00:02:41]You take any issue.

[00:02:43]The the auditors The auditors, there is conflict of interest. Ernst & Young, there is conflict conflict of interest.

[00:02:50]NDB money has gone to Sampath Bank.

[00:02:52]Sampath Bank is not being investigated.

[00:02:54]Where has this money gone? No one is investigating. So, all this is people's money.

[00:03:01]NDB is owned by the EPF. 30 or 40% of the NDB is owned by the EPF. EPF has people's money.

[00:03:10]Working people who have contributed their whole lifetime to the EPF, that is the money which is in the EPF, and that is the money which has been invested with the with the NDB. So, what happens is this government or any government, when it comes to taking off haircuts, the haircuts are not taken by banks, the haircuts are not taken by the Central Bank, the haircut is being taken by the EPF because they are the most vulnerable sector, and there is no one to defend them. So, this is a very very dangerous trend this country is facing. And whatever said and done, whatever said and done, Anura Kumara Dissanayake has no options. He has no options. He has The only option he has is now maybe to take a person like or get the support of the person like Anil Wickremesinghe who have whatever said and done. In 2022, he pulled the chestnuts out of the fire.

[00:04:04]So this is This is the This is the option he has. He He can't go on with this team. He is a failure. His cabinet is a failure. His members of parliament are a failure. So if he cannot perform, he must come to terms that this government is not going forward. There is stagnation in this country. There is no development. There is no increase in production. There is no increase in income. Everything has just come to a standstill.

[00:04:32]Income is going down. Expenses are going up. Stagflation is taking the day. So therefore, Mr. Anura Kumara Dissanayake will have to definitely take a call.

[00:04:43]He has to come and make a self-assessment and see whether he's a success. If he is not a success, if he feels that he cannot do this, then he must either dissolve this cabinet and appoint a new cabinet, get people from outside who can put this country right. Otherwise, we are going to another another stage where we will have to have another uprising.

[00:05:08]The people will come onto the streets.

[00:05:09]There will be another agony. Because with all this, the government is not going to be able to get the fertilizer for the farmer. And then that is going to cause another alarm. Farmers are going to come onto the street. Moment the farmers start coming onto the street, moment there's no fertilizer, we are going to come into a situation where there is going to be anarchy in this country. So Mr. Anura Kumara Dissanayake has to take this into serious consideration. If he cannot, he must quit. If he Otherwise, the only way he can rectify it is to get someone who can put this economy right. Otherwise, every citizen of this country is going to pay a big price this time.