Government Incapable of Implementing Even a National Agricultural Policy: Sajith Premadasa
18-Jul-2026.
Opposition Leader Sajith Premadasa has alleged that the present Government lacks the understanding required to implement a proper national agricultural policy and has deliberately pushed hundreds of thousands of farmers into poverty.
Addressing a public meeting in Hambantota on July 16, Premadasa claimed that the National People's Power (NPP), which campaigned as a movement representing ordinary people, had abandoned the farming community after coming to power.
He said leaders who once hailed farmers as "kings" during the election campaign are now branding the very same people as "fake farmers".
According to the Opposition Leader, farmers constitute a significant proportion of the country's 30 to 40 per cent population living in poverty. He attributed the rising cost of agricultural production to the import of substandard fuel and agrochemicals, delays in providing fertiliser subsidies and the increasing prices of farming equipment.
Premadasa pointed out that although the Minister of Agriculture had admitted in Parliament that the cost of producing one kilogram of paddy was Rs.137, the Government had fixed the guaranteed purchase price at only Rs.120 per kilogram. As a result, farmers incur a loss of Rs.17 on every kilogram produced, he said, adding that the promised purchase price of Rs.150 announced during the election campaign remains unfulfilled.
He further criticised the Government for failing to address the human-elephant conflict and irrigation-related issues affecting the farming sector. He claimed that opportunities to raise these concerns both in Parliament and through the media were being restricted.
Drawing a comparison with the public protests that led to the fall of a previous administration, Premadasa said farmers had now begun a large-scale movement to remove the present Government as well.
Appealing to farmers not to be misled by what he described as false promises, the Opposition Leader pledged to continue raising their issues both inside and outside Parliament, irrespective of the challenges he may face.
