The UNP yesterday gave the government time until March to put things in order, failing which it would take to the streets on behalf of the suffering masses.

Opposition and UNP leader Ranil Wickremesinghe addressing the media in Colombo, said the March deadline was set in view of government claims that it would win the battle against the LTTE by then.

However, the war canno’t be accepted as an excuse for the unprecedented rise in the cost of living, he said.

"The government is duty bound to bring down the prices of essential goods immediately, without asking people to go hungry until March. The JVP by its inaction is also responsible for the present situation."

The reason for people having to undergo so much of suffering is not the war or petrol prices, but rampant corruption, inefficiency and the government’s short sighted policy of printing currency notes without any control or concern about the adverse impact it would have on the economy, Wickremesinghe said.

"The war was on, even during our time, but people never went hungry. We improved the economy and also increased rice production. But today there is no proper policy with regard to any sector."

Wickremesinghe, said the government was carrying on merrily by hoodwinking people with a whole host of false promises and lies, but the truth is that only twenty per cent of the budget has been allocated for the war.

"If the other eighty percent is properly and intelligently utilised, the people would not have to undergo so much of suffering," he added.