Proposed Siyasaviya an outright fraud - Samurdhi development officers society
 

by Uditha Kumarasinghe

The All Island Samurdhi Development and Agricultural Research Production Assistants Officers Society yesterday said the UNP's proposed Siyasaviya to replace the present Samurdhi programme is an outright fraud introduced to mislead the Samurdhi beneficiaries.

Society General Secretary S.A.D.Jagath Kumara at a media briefing yesterday observed that the UNP which completely slashed the Samurdhi subsidy of over 600000 Samurdhi recipient families will never increase the benefits.

He said the UNP has not mentioned anything on the total number of low income families whom they have planned to grant Siyasaviya. This is an attempt made by the UNP to hoodwink the poor during this election period.

He said at this Presidential Election the Samurdhi Movement and the Samurdhi Development Officers (SDOs) have become a serious challenge to the UNP. In this context, the UNP is attempting to make various threats on the Samurdhi Movement. UNP MP Sajith Premadasa has described the Samurdhi as a movement of beggars while threatening the SDOs who will not support the proposed Siyasaviya that they will be skinned alive.

"Samurdhi is a people's movement. If the UNP attempts to cancel the Samurdhi Movement we will make any sacrifice to safeguard the movement. We will not allow anybody to destroy the Samurdhi Movement whatsoever," he said.

During the two year UNP regime a large amount of money of the Samurdhi Movement has been utilised to build the images of several UNP politicians. The UNP which used the money allocated for the poor for their political activities is now describing Samurdhi as a movement of beggars, he said.

Premadasa has also described Jana Saviya implemented during the administration of his father late President R.Premadasa as a very successful poverty alleviation programme.

Jana Saviya was granted only to 500000 low income families for a period of two years. But the Samurdhi Movement introduced by President Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunga in 1995 has given subsidies to 2 million low income families. Therefore the statement made by Premadasa on Janasaviya is completely false, he said.

The Samurdhi programme while affording subsidies to the poor has also taken a series of measures to develop the infrastructure facilities of rural villages and has implemented housing projects to overcome the shelter problem of poor. The Samurdhi Banks set up throughout the country provide credit facilities to a maximum of Rs.100000 to Samurdhi beneficiaries to commence various self employment ventures without demanding any guarantee, he said.

During the two year UNP Government they turned the Samurdhi into a movement of beggars and reduced the Samurdhi subsidy given to poor. In order to come to power, the UNP is making various allegations against the Samurdhi Movement.

Jagath Kumara said their union had extensive discussions with Prime Minister Rajapakse and pledged to develop the Samurdhi Movement. Therefore the union has decided to extend their fullest support for the victory of UPFA Presidential candidate Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapakse. The union will also handover a memorandum to the Prime Minister with 5 million signatures seeking his pledge to safeguard the Samurdhi Movement.