National Security Advisor and President's Chief of Staff Sagala Ratnayaka said that the officials have been instructed to act according to the new circulars, apart from the old circulars, in providing relief to the people affected by the inclement weather.
He mentioned this while joining an observation tour yesterday (08) to investigate the well-being of the people of the Kaduwela area affected by the flood and to look into the relief program being carried out for those people.
Ratnayaka looked into the program to restore the people’s lives after the flood subsided and instructed the officials to provide all necessary facilities to facilitate the resettlement of the people.
He also visited the houses in the flood-affected area, engaged in conversation with the house owners and discussed with them the measures needed to be taken to control the flood situation in the future.
Meanwhile, Ratnayaka also inspected the medical clinic at the historical Sri Rankadu Pattini Temple premises in Kaduwela with the participation of a foreign medical team.
Expressing his views to the media Mr. Ratnayaka noted:
"The President has instructed us to provide all the necessary support for the restoration of the lives of the people affected by the disaster. We visit these areas from time to time according to the instructions given by him. We have given the authority to the officials to make the necessary decisions to make the work of providing relief to the people more efficient.
In cases where such decisions cannot be made, they have been submitted to an appeals committee to take the final decision. All these activities are expected to provide the necessary background for the affected people to restore their lives as soon as possible.
There have been many wage disparities in our country. This situation has arisen due to not arranging salaries in an orderly manner and providing immediate answers at various times. It was approved in the last cabinet to conduct a proper study on the wage disparity and prepare a report.
Those activities will take place in the future. But this is an occasion where people are facing a disaster. And this is also an instance when the country is facing a big economic problem.
The country’s economy has stabilized but the country is facing a financial problem, so we are going through a time where everyone should be careful. Therefore, this is not the right time to strike. I request all government officials to understand these facts and act accordingly. We will never ignore your questions. It must be said that we have an understanding regarding that and have prepared the necessary program to solve them."
Member of Parliament Premanath C. Dolawatta and former members of the Kaduwela Provincial Council and government officials attended the event.
