there are only about 700 ICU beds to treat critically ill patients in the country where two parties have ruled alternatively for 70 years says the Information Secretary of the JVP Vijitha Herath.
He was speaking at a media briefing convened at the party head office today (28th).
He said, “Yesterday (27th) was the day when the highest number of corona patients was identified in Sri Lanka. Corona patients are reported concerning the PCR tests done. Recently the government reduced PCR tests. As a result, fewer patients were reported. Then a few days ago the government decided that 15,000 PCR tests should be done daily. As the number of PCR tests increased, patients began to be reported even from the villages. Also, the number of patients dying per day has increased today. What is unfortunate is that a patient dies without an ICU bed at Mawanella Hospital. There are about 700 ICU beds in Sri Lanka. Governments that have ruled the country for years did not provide the minimum facilities needed to save critically ill patients. They have failed to provide the necessary health facilities to our people.
The other day, when the President went to Meemure for a ‘Conversation with the Village’ program, a villager said that the local hospital did not have a PCR machine. The President said PCR was not crucial at the time but Vaccination is the answer. When the head of state says PCR is useless, it is not surprising that all the authorities in the health sector abandon PCR. The real story is that this government gave up attention on the corona; they allowed the corona to go astray. The government has always tried to convince us that corona and mortality were declining. As such, the number of PCR tests was reduced. People also ignored the risk. Circulation was not restricted. We saw how people behaved during the New Year festivities. Doctors said the corona could increase after the New Year. But the government ignored them. The Minister of Health says that discussions were held with the health sector to impose restrictions on travel but the proposal was defeated. She is the Minister in charge of the subject. Who makes these decisions above her? There is a serious problem there. Who ignored this?
Recently Ukrainians were brought to Sri Lanka. Despite the protests in the society, the government ignored the protests and brought in these Ukrainians. The report presented by Sudarshani Fernandopulle in Parliament stated that Ukrainians caused the second wave. The second wave came from Ukrainians staying at a hotel in Katunayake. However, the government ignored them. Here are the results.
Also, the government failed to give the covid vaccine to the people properly. Nearly 900,000 was given. They also do not have a second dose. The second dose should be given on April 02. If the vaccine is the only globally accepted method, the government should take immediate steps to provide it. However, in our country, that process is very irregular. The population of our country is around 20 million. According to the health authorities, covid can be controlled only if at least 14 million people are vaccinated. However, so far, only 0.9 million has been given the vaccine in our country. That too is only the first dose. It is a severe situation. The reason for this was that the government took this lightly and ignored the risk.
With the escalation of the corona situation, the living standards of the people in the country have dwindled. Fear of the corona caused the mental, economic, and social condition of the people to collapse. The government brought poisonous coconut oil. People were beaten by it. The government said it was okay to eat a little poison. Not only that, they brought a strange formula to the gas cylinder and increased the price of gas. The government created news that a 12.5 kg cylinder price was reduced, and the price of gas was reduced by Rs.100. But what really happened was that the amount of gas in the cylinder decreased. When the actual weight was calculated, the price of a gas cylinder increased by about Rs. 400. Although the decision was withdrawn due to public protests, there are still gas cylinders in the market with reduced weight. Consumers have to buy them. That burden has been placed on the people. People are suffering due to the inability to repay microfinance loans. The government promised at the election but has not fulfilled those promises. Still farmers are fasting in Polonnaruwa. On the other hand, the country’s national resources are being sold to looters according to imperialist interests.
In the face of this situation, the working people of our country are under real pressure. It is challenging to maintain one’s life. In such a situation, it is our responsibility to mobilize the working people to win their rights. May 01 is also a day when working people around the world fight for their rights. May 01 is a symbolic day when the working masses fight against the deprivation of their health, education and living rights. That is why the JVP had made all arrangements to celebrate May 2021. May Day celebration was organized in Colombo on May 01, and another May Day celebration was organized in Jaffna on May 02. However, due to the negligence of these rulers, the corona conditions have escalated and the people are unable to participate in the May Day celebrations. According to the health recommendations, people are at risk at big gatherings. Considering this, we have decided to hold this May Day celebration as a live broadcast online using modern technology. Arrangements have been made to hold the JVP May Day celebrations live on May 01 at 10.00 am. We urge all Sri Lankans worldwide to join us online to commemorate the day we fight for the rights of working people.
