Four Trade Chambers yesterday welcomed the appointment of the new Cabinet after nearly two months of political uncertainty.
They added that the government should move away from political rhetoric and return to a result oriented performance.
The Ceylon Chamber of Commerce in a statement says, “A new Cabinet of Ministers has been appointed and the expectations of the Ceylon Chamber of Commerce, remains as before, that the political leadership of the country will focus on the development of the country.
“We hold the President and the Prime Minister responsible and accountable for the choice of Ministers. We have serious challenges to overcome, including the challenges of meaningful implementation of the development agenda. We want to see that happen and we want to see that the Policy Makers take action to achieve the results. We also want to see that the political leaders to respect the need for integrity in all of their actions and also call on them to create the space for public servants to carry out their duties and functions without interference,” the Ceylon Chamber said in the statement.
“It is our fervent hope that political parties will refrain from creating issues that will distract from the focus on serving the people,” it said.
President of the Federation of Chambers of Commerce and Industry of Sri Lanka (FCCISL) Ruwan Edirisinghe said, “We are not bothered as to which Government is in power as we are not biased to any Government of the day. What we want from the Government of the day is to ensure that they take responsibility for the economic development of the country. The Government should take responsibility.”
He said what was important was for the Government to have the right policies and also for the Ministers to have a good grasp of their subject portfolios. President of the Ceylon National Chamber of Commerce and Industry (CNCI) Raja Hewabowalage said, “We are happy that a stable Government and a Cabinet has been formed. However, they should improve the economy in the light of the third quarter (3Q) Economic development being around 2.9%. He also said that there was a dire need for a stable and sustainable industrial policy as the industrial growth has lowered up to now. There was much scope in this direction.
“There is also a need for a simplified tax regime as well,” he said
Meanwhile a spokesman for the International Business Council said that the dire need for the government was to engage in the economic development drive and social empowerment without engaging in political rhetoric, with the Presidential elections, just a year away.
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