Addressing the gathering, Silva highlighted that the government has had to navigate severe global and domestic crises since taking office. He noted that ongoing geopolitical tensions in the Middle East have exponentially increased shipping and oil import costs, causing significant pressure on the US Dollar. Despite these factors pushing the exchange rate past LKR 350, Silva stated that swift government intervention successfully stabilized and brought the dollar down to the LKR 330 level, demonstrating the administration's capacity for sound economic management.
Further complicating the national budget were recent severe weather disasters. Silva explained that the government had to divert heavily from its planned reserves to allocate roughly LKR 500 billion toward disaster relief and recovery efforts. Because capital originally intended for staging elections had to be redirected to support affected citizens, Silva clarified that holding provincial council polls in 2026 is no longer feasible, though the government aims to conduct them next year, barring further unforeseen crises.
The JVP General Secretary also addressed regional concerns, dismissing claims of external friction by stating that the NPP administration maintains an excellent, friendly relationship with the government of India. Touching upon the sensitive issue of land in the North, Silva responded to ongoing public protests regarding military-occupied areas, such as Myliddy. He assured residents that the government remains fully committed to its pre-election pledges, revealing that numerous military camps have already been relocated to release large tracts of land over the past year and a half. He added that the administration is systematically negotiating further military downsizing to return remaining identified lands to the public in a structured manner, urging citizens not to be misled by opposition-driven agitations.
