Why UNP has a distinct responsibility to help Vanni people at this hour of need?

By Thomas Johnpulle

(April 23, London, Sri Lanka Guardian) At the 2005 November Presidential Election, UNP received 65,798 votes from Vanni which is the highest ever number of votes obtained in Vanni by a Presidential Election candidate. His main opponent only managed to get 17,197 votes which gave the UNP the third largest lead by district. Today people of Vanni go through the toughest time this country went through after gaining Independence. It is worse than the tsunami in the sense the carnage is recurring. People have been driven to near insanity.. The government is doing all what it can though it is far from adequate. But what has the UNP done to them since the last election? Sadly, nothing! This is their time of need and this is the time they need help most. Neglecting them at the hour of need is unforgivable and exposes the real inside of politicians.

In the aftermath of the 2004 Tsunami, the JVP did a commendable job in helping out the victims. More than supplies they concentrated on providing help. At this moment supplies are needed most and UNP with a strong backing of business community stands in good stead to lend a helping hand to those who stood by it at its hour of need. Interestingly most candidates of the UNP contesting the Western Provincial Council election, which is just around the corner, are wealthy businessmen! Therefore all the reasons stack up to lend a helping hand to civilians languishing in IDP camps. It is a great way to say thank you for 2005. However, it is a great disappointment that nothing has been done by the main Opposition party so far.

This may lead to complete change of heart in Vanni voters and the support they extended in the past will not be there the next time. That is a huge loss as it takes away a fair chunk of its vote base and causes to lose the district that secured the third largest lead at the crucial election in 2005.

It is not too late. It is easy to launch a large scale campaign to collect essentials including food items, books and stationary, clothes, essential medicines like paracetamol, infant formula milk and water bottles as the UNP last had a vote base of over four million in 2005. This will start a competition between other parties too that fared less in Vanni to sustain their support. The task of sustaining IDPs is too big a task for the government alone.

When you ‘advertise’ during hard times, it will be remembered in good times. The best form of advertisement is to help the IDPs in camps in Vanni and Jaffna. This is the time their vote grabbers must stand by them and materially help them. Forget them now and they will surely forget you when you need them. However, it is very unfortunate that politicians who benefited most from the Vanni people have deliberately turned a blind eye. Please don’t desert them now. This is the time they need their leaders.

-Sri Lanka Guardian