Former Prime Minister and UNP leader Ranil Wickremesinghe said if it was necessary to go for a complete lockdown, relief should be provided to people in need.
He said that that if US$ 200 million had been spent by the government to import vaccine doses last November, there would not have been a vaccine shortage in the country.
Wickremesinghe in a special statement said that the depreciation of the Sri Lankan Rupee was due to the printing of money by the Central Bank and the spread of the virus was due to the influx of Indian tourists into the country only for the sake of earning foreign exchange.
“Don’t sacrifice people’s lives by focusing about the economy,”he said.
Wickremesinghe said that although the government continues to administer vaccines, not all citizens would be able to complete vaccination this year.So the first thing to do is to seek medical advice on how they can control the further spread of the virus, he said.
He said that the government must ensure that the vaccines necessary for the people is purchased. “The people of Sri Lanka need 30 million shots but it is difficult to bring that amount within this year,” he said.
He also stressed that the government should give the second dose of the AstraZeneca vaccine to those who were administered with the first dose.
Wickremesinghe said that anti-COVID efforts cannot be coordinated by the existing Committees the President and the Cabinet should exercise the powers vested in them by the Constitution and make necessary plans to control the spread of the disease.
Wickremesinghe called on the government to take necessary steps to save the nation by taking action to ensure the health and safety of the country.
(Daily News)
