Finance
Sri Lankan President Ranil Wickremesinghe has written to members of Parliament, inviting them to form an all-party national government to assist the bankrupt country in recovering from the worst economic crisis in the country’s history.
“The government is currently engaged in great efforts to gradually restore normalcy to the political and social unrest created by the economic crisis that the country is facing today,” Wickremesinghe said in the letter on Friday.
“Accordingly, initial plans required to implement a systematic economic programme are being formulated while preliminary measures are also being undertaken for the creation of economic stability,” he added.
Wickremesinghe stated that a program could only be implemented if all political parties represented in Parliament, expert groups, and civil society were involved.
He also proposed starting a conversation with parties about reintroducing the 19th Amendment to the Constitution. The 19A, which was passed in 2015, reduced presidential powers by putting Parliament above the executive president.
In 2015, Wickremesinghe was the primary sponsor of the 19th Amendment. However, the 19A was repealed after Gotabaya Rajapaksa won the presidential election in November 2019.
Sri Lankan parliamentarians elected Wickremesinghe as the country’s new president on July 20, with the majority of votes coming from lawmakers affiliated with ousted President Rajapaksa’s Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP).
Only two non-SLPP lawmakers were appointed to the Cabinet on Friday. According to the constitution, the Cabinet can be expanded to include up to 30 members. The 73-year-old President was appointed to finish Rajapaksa’s term, after he fled to the Maldives and then to Singapore.
Rajapaksa appointed Wickremesinghe as Prime Minister in mid-May. He was tasked with reviving the economy by addressing the fuel, cooking gas, and power shortages that sparked mass protests against Rajapaksa.
By refusing to pay its international debt, the government declared bankruptcy in mid-April.
Wickremesinghe stated on Wednesday that his government’s top priorities are to repair the country’s ailing economy and to end the severe fuel shortage that has worsened since the last shipment under the Indian credit line arrived in the country in June.
Source:HT
