Minister Bimal Rathnayake has shot down criticisms of a lack of inclusivity in the newly appointed Cabinet, stating that the National Peoples’ Power (NPP) Government is one of Sri Lankans and not Sinhalese, Muslims, or Tamils.
Speaking to local media, Minister Bimal Rathnayake said it was unfair criticism and was an insult to the NPP’s mandate.
He pointed out that this was the first time in 76 years that all communities forgot their religious and cultural differences to vote as one nation to elect a supermajority government.
Minister Rathnayake stressed that the NPP Government will never discriminate against any community based on their religious or cultural practices, adding that it is not and has never been in the government’s books.
On criticisms of the lack of Muslim MPs in the Cabinet, Minister Rathnayake said that several Muslim MPs had been elected by the public from other communities.
“We won in Kalmunai, Sammanthurai, the Northern Province and Nuwara Eliya. For the first time, Matara elected a Muslim MP. For the first time, a Muslim MP has emerged victorious in the Kurunegala District. It is similar in the Gampaha District as well. There are two Muslim MPs from the Kandy District. It is evident that Muslim MPs have been elected from districts which have never voted for a Muslim Parliamentarian before. In Digamadulla, Sammanthurai, Kalmunai and Akkaraipattu, Sinhalese MPs were elected from those constituencies,” he clarified.
Minister Rathnayake further noted that this breakdown is only being given out of respect for the people’s sentiments.
He emphasised that the NPP government in no way acknowledges such racial or community references. (Newswire)