Mahinda takes charge as PM, Rajapaksas are in full control

Colombo, Aug. 9: Mahinda Rajapaksa was sworn in on Sunday as Sri Lanka’s new Prime Minister at a centuriesold Buddhist temple after his party won a landslide victory in parliamentary elections that allowed the influential family to consolidate power for the next five years.

The 74-year-old former president and Sri Lanka People’s Party (SLPP) leader was administered the oath of office by his younger brother and President Gotabaya Rajapaksa at a gathering of Buddhist monks, representatives of the diplomatic community and other senior officials.

“I am humbled by the opportunity given to me to serve my people again,” he tweeted soon after starting his fourth innings as Prime Minister.

Mahinda Rajapaksa said the trust bestowed on him by the people will inspire him to continue to serve the country.

The Prime Minister vowed that he would ensure that Sri Lanka would embark on a progressive journey during his tenure.

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Colombo, Aug. 9: Sri Lanka’s former President Mahinda Rajapaksa was sworn in as the prime minister for the fourth time Sunday after his party secured a landslide victory in parliamentary elections that cemented his family’s hold on power. Rajapaksa took oath before his younger brother, President Gotabaya Rajapaksa, at a prominent Buddhist temple on the outskirts of the capital Colombo. Mahinda Rajapaksa served as the island nation’s president from 2005 to 2015 and is highly popular among the ethnic majority Sinhalese for ending the country’s 25year civil war against Tamil rebels in 2009.

He was first elected prime minister in 2004 and again appointed for brief periods in 2018 and 2019. Sri Lanka People’s Front — the party led by the Rajapaksa brothers — won 145 seats in the 225member Parliament in the election last Wednesday. Its main opponent obtained only 54 seats.

A party representing ethnic minority Tamils won 10 seats, and 16 others were split among 12 small parties. The victory gave the Rajapaksa brothers nearly the two-third majority of seats required

Sri Lankan President Gotabaya Rajapaksa (R) swears in elder brother Mahinda Rajapaksa (L) as Sri Lanka’s new Prime Minister in Colombo on Sunday.

to make constitutional changes that could strengthen dynastic rule in the country. This time, five members of the Rajapaksa family have been elected as lawmakers — Rajapaksa, his son Namal, the eldest brother Chamal and his son Sashindra, and a nephew, Nipuna Ranawaka. The brothers need 150 seats to be able to change the constitution.

At least four small parties collaborate with the Rajapaksas’ party, so they appear to have mustered that support. However, analysts say any attempt by Gotabaya Rajapaksa to push for changes that will strengthen presidential powers at the expense of the prime minister may trigger sibling rivalry.