Colombo Acknowledging that there was international pressure on it, President Mahinda Rajapaksa has said that the country cannot allow LTTE chief Prabhakaran’s "ghost" to rule Sri Lanka even after his death.
"There is international pressure on us. There is pressure from outside the country and from within to reverse the victories we achieved. However, we cannot let that happen. We cannot let the country be taken backwards," he said on Wednesday while addressing a gathering in the South-Eastern Hambantota town.
"We cannot allow Prabhakaran’s ghost to govern the country now that he is no more. No one has got the right to go to that point. Therefore, we all have the responsibility to keep this in mind and work for the future," he said.
Prabhakaran was killed on May 18 by the Sri Lankan military.
Earlier, the President laid the foundation stones for the new Administrative Office and the Tank Farm Project in the premises of the Hambantota Port.
The bunkering facility will comprise of 14 tanks, eight of which will be used to provide oil for ships while three will be used to store LPG.
Rest of the tanks will be used for providing oil to aircrafts. The new Administrative Building will comprise of 15 floors spread over a total floor area is 100,000 sq ft.
Construction work of the port is scheduled to be completed by the year 2011 with a total cost of USD 360 million
The Exim Bank of China will provide 85 per cent of the allocation.
Later winding up his campaign for the Southern Provincial Council elections in an adjacent town, he told a rally that the people of South will react to international allegations levelled against the leaders who pioneered the humanitarian mission against LTTE "terror" through polls on October 10.
President Rajapaksa said certain parties were engaged in a malicious attempt to discredit the government at international level.
He said the government will always work towards strengthening relations with the international community.
(For updates you can share with your friends, follow TNN on Facebook and Twitter )