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JVP National List MP Anura Kumara Dissanayake issuing a statement has criticised the United National Front government on their decision to import essential food items. He says that the reason trotted out by the Ranil Wickremesinghe administration is childish and the move to import essential food stocks will definitely push the farmers from the frying pan to the fire while at the same time dealing a crippling blow to the country's agriculture sector.

The statement:

The country's agriculture sector which is Sri Lanka's major engine of growth has been dealt a body blow due to the recent decision taken by the United National Front regime to import all essential food items as rice, potatoes, onions and several other varieties of vegetables.

The main reason trotted out by the government on their decision to import these food stocks is that if they are not imported then the prices of all local food items will shoot up considerably making it unbearable for the public to purchase them at comparatively low prices.

This excuse given is a pretty childish one and it patently shows the inability of the Ranil Wickremesinghe led UNF government to keep a tab on the prices of the essential food items instead of allowing them to escalate at regular intervals.

The most damning aspect of this decision of the UNF is that the scores of farmers countrywide who had already suffered immensely during the past seven years have been driven from the frying pan to the fire.

Among the countless number of problems faced by the farmers of today happen to be that there is no genuine price that the farmers could get for their products, the high cost in prices of all fertiliser and agricultural chemical products, scarcity of water, and the inability to pay back agricultural loans.

These are only just a few of the pressing problems faced by the farmer community of this country and now with the measures taken by the UNF to import these food stocks it has caused serious heartburn to all the farmers.

As a result of this decision all farmers who are involved in paddy cultivation have been pushed into a desperate situation being unable to sell their products let alone getting a decent price.

It is no secret that almost all politicians of the UNP during the last election campaign cried out from their rooftops and assured the masses that once a new UNP regime is established they will improve the hitherto bankrupt image of the farmer community and revitalize the country's agriculture sector like never before.

But what is happening and taking place now is contrary to what they preached not too long ago.

In fact they have succeeded in increasing the prices of almost all the essential food items sans a care for the agonizing cries of the poor masses in the rest of the country who struggle to even eke-out a day to day living.

The UNF government also seems to be doing better than the previous People's Alliance government in plunging the country's agriculture sector into an unprecedented crisis like never before through decisions such as these.

If we recall the past it is obvious that the tactics adopted by the former UNP leader J. R. Jayewardene to control the ever increasing prices of essential food items even way back in 1977 was to import such food stocks as if it was a miracle that had to be performed by him.

Now almost 24 years later his protege the present UNP leader Ranil Wickremesinghe is continuing to follow the same policies of J. R. Jayewardene with the country plummeting down to a deep economic morass.

With this decision to import food items the sector that is bound to thrive on this will be the big time business racketeers. Therefore it is the prime duty and responsibility of the masses here to be wary of these present day tactics of the UNF and impede their progress to make Sri Lanka an economic quagmire. 

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