It is confirmed that Ranil Wickromasinghe’s promise on May Day to increase the daily wages of the estate workers to 1,700 rupees, aiming at the presidential election, has now boomeranged on him.
Cabinet Minister Bandula Gunawardena, Plantation Industry Minister Ranjith Siyambalapitiya, Foreign Employment Minister Manusha Nanayakkara, and many frontline ministers are making various efforts to prevent this smashup. While holding a press conference at Elpitiya, Manusha Nanayakkara made a statement against even the conditions agreed with the IMF.
He has said that the government will take over the estates of plantation companies that fail to increase the wages of the plantation workers. It has been stated that even the cabinet’s approval has been obtained to prepare a bill for this purpose.
To say that Ranil Wickramasinghe Pohottu’s joint government, which attempts to sell government institutions and national resources before next September, will retake estates is a completely deliberate attempt to mislead the people. Ministers have to fall to such low levels to protect Ranil Wickremesinghe.
