Finance
Sri Lanka’s veteran politician Ranil Wickremesinghe was sworn in as the 26th Prime Minister of the Indian Ocean island nation, which has been crippled by its worst-ever economic crisis.
Wickremesinghe was sworn in as Prime Minister for the sixth time by his rival party leader and President Gotabaya Rajapaska. He is also the world’s first premier to lead a government with only one seat in Parliament.
In the midst of the crisis, President Rajapaksa invited the opposition parties to form an all-party government.
The main opposition United People’s Power party, led by Sajith Premadasa, and the Marxist National People’s Power party, led by Anura Kumara Disannayake, have refused to form a government until President Rajapaksa resigns.
Mahinda Rajapaksa, the President’s elder brother and Prime Minister, resigned controversially on Monday after violence erupted across the country when a group of his supporters attacked peaceful protesters demanding the government step down amid a severe financial crisis.
“(British PM Winston) Churchill had only four members backing him in 1939. How he became the Prime Minister because of the crisis, I have done the same,” the newly-appointed PM Wickremesinghe reporters who questioned his moral right to become the PM without a majority in the parliament.
“I will make a government with the participation of all the parties,” Wickremesinghe
assured as as he was leaving a Buddhist temple in Colombo after participating at religious ceremonies.
“Do you want to suffer without fuel and gas while engaging in petty politics or find solutions to the current crisis?” he questioned the journalist and said that he would work to overcome the current crisis.
Ex-PM Mahinda Rajapaksa was one of the firsts to wish Wickremesighe.
In a Twitter message, Rajapaksa said: “Congratulations to the newly appointed Prime Minister. I wish you all the best as you navigate these troubled times”.
Wishing the newly-appointed PM, the Indian High Commission in Colombo stated that it “hopes for political stability and looks forward to working with the Government of Sri Lanka formed in accordance with democratic processes pursuant to the swearing in of Hon’ble @RW_UNP as the Prime Minister of #SriLanka. India’s commitment to the people of #SriLanka will continue.”
US Ambassador Julie Chung, in a tweet, said: “Look forward to working w/ @RW_UNP.
His appointment as PM, and the quick formation of an inclusive government, are first steps to addressing the crisis & promoting stability. We encourage meaningful progress at the IMF & long-term solutions that meet the needs of all Sri Lankans”.
After entering politics in 1970 and becoming the country’s youngest member of Parliament in 1977, Wickremesinghe became Prime Minister for the first time in 1993 under then-President D.B. Wijetunga, and again in 2001 under Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunge.
Wickremesinghe was appointed Prime Minister again in 2015, when Maithripala Sirisena formed a 100-day government. His party won the subsequent 2015 general election, and he was elected Prime Minister. But his alliance with President Sirisena came to an end when Sirisena replaced him for 52 days with Mahinda Rajapaska. However, Wickremsinghe was sworn in as Prime Minister again after the Supreme Court removed Rajapaksa.
Wickremesinghe, on the other hand, had never served a full five-year term as Prime Minister.
His party split over a leadership dispute in the 2020 general election, and deputy leader Premadasa broke away with a majority of the MPs. Wickermesinghe did not win a single seat in the election, but he was elected to parliament using a national list seat based on the total votes received by his party.
Source:IANS
