(UTV|COLOMBO) – The decision people should take on November 16 is whether they should elect Sajith Premadasa to transform the country into a Dhammadaveepa or else elect Gotabaya Rajapaksa to transform each and every house into an abattoir or meat stall, Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe said.
The Prime Minister was speaking at election rallies in support of NDF Presidential candidate Minister Sajith Premadasa in Anuradhapura and Kuliyaptiya.
Prime Minister Wickremesinghe said page 44 of Gotabhaya Rajapaksa’s election manifesto said, “Financial and technological assistance would be given to start home-based shops to sell toxin-free meat.”
He said this meant that loans would be granted to open a slaughterhouse or meat stall in every home. Therefore that manifesto truly reflected the true face and nature of those people who appeared as the true protectors of Buddhism.
Prime Minister Wickremesinghe who observed that a massive gathering had attended that rally despite it being Pasalosvaka Poya said they would not conduct dansalas on Poya at state expense or try to win elections by distributing sil cloth (sil redi).
The Prime Minister said as a government they had completed a great deal of work towards nurturing Buddhism. The historic Mihintale sacred area had been declared a national heritage. The Tripitaka had also been declared a national heritage.
They had also launched a Buduputh Sriraksha insurance scheme for the benefit of the Maha Sangha. Furthermore, the Ministries of Buddhasasana and Cultural Affairs and Economic Affairs had jointly spent nearly Rs. 4,000 million to develop Buddhist places of worship. A number of other programmes too had been launched for the development and perpetuation of Buddhism.
The Premier said they were anxious to learn about any service rendered towards Buddhism by Gotabaya Rajapaksa. It was stated in page 44 of his election manifesto that it had been planned to transform each and every home into a meat stall. This showed that Gotabaya Rajapaksa had not deviated from the ‘meat stall culture’ as a Defence Secretary or a Presidential candidate.
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