(Agenzia Fides) – “The people of Sri Lanka are waiting for a change in the new government, especially on the economic level, with measures that reduce the cost of living and lower taxes on essential goods such as food and medicines,” said Fr. Cyril Gamini Fernando, priest in Colombo and director of the Catholic weekly newspaper in the Sinhalese-language “Gnartha Pradeepaya” (“The Light of Knowledge”), in an interview with Fides, while a public debate is underway in the nation on the issue of tax reform. “Patience is required because the government has only been in power for a few months. People have confidence in the current President, Anura Kumara Dissanayake, elected last September, and believe that he will work to improve the socio-economic conditions of the population,” reports Father Fernando, while a nationwide signature campaign is underway in the country, calling on the government to significantly reduce taxes on basic food, medicine and school supplies.

Believers of all religions, including Catholics, have participated in the signature collection. Father Jeewantha Peiris, a Catholic priest of the Diocese of Badulla who works for social justice, is among those in favor of the necessary reduction, noting that “the tax cut was announced by Dissanayake during the election campaign and is therefore one of his commitments.”

Fr. Fernando adds other elements in his interview with Fides: “As I recently wrote in my editorial in our Catholic weekly, it is the government’s duty to side with the poorest and meet their needs: this is one of the expectations of today’s people.” In addition,” he continues, “a second problem that must be addressed is that of organized crime, with the proliferation of groups active in drug trafficking, which puts our young people at risk”. On the other hand, he concludes, “the government is struggling with the phenomenon of corruption: this too is a key issue in the management of public affairs. Of course, these are issues that take time and must be considered in the long term. The president, who has only been in office for a few months, still enjoys the trust of the population. Our position is: we must wait to see how he will move, what political choices he will make, how and if they will really benefit people’s lives”.