Lanka Prez likely to remove PM brother
COLOMBO: Sri Lanka’s president has agreed to replace his older brother as prime minister in a proposed interim government to solve a political impasse caused by the country’s worst economic crisis in decades, a prominent lawmaker said on Friday.
President Gotabaya Rajapaksa agreed that a national council will be appointed to name a new prime minister and Cabinet comprised of all parties in Parliament, lawmaker Maithripala Sirisena said after meeting with the president, AP reported. Sirisena, who was president before Rajapaksa, was a governing party lawmaker before defecting earlier this month along with nearly 40 other legislators.
Sri Lanka is near bankruptcy and has announced it is suspending payments on its foreign loans. It has to repay $7 billion in foreign debt this year, and $25 billion by 2026. Its foreign reserves stand at less than $1 billion. The foreign exchange shortage has severely limited imports, forcing people to wait in long lines to buy essentials such as food, fuel, cooking gas and medicine.
Meanwhile, Sri Lanka’s central bank governor said domestic debt in the form of government securities and development bonds will not be restructured as restructuring external debt is a top priority for the nation. Governor Nandalal Weerasinghe also provided an update on the progress made during the recent discussions with the International Monetary Fund and World Bank, Xinhua News Agency reported.
Addressing a meeting of the Committee of the Ceylon Chamber of Commerce, he said progress has been made towards establishing a macro-fiscal policy framework and initiating structural reforms.
COLOMBO: Sri Lanka’s president has agreed to replace his older brother as prime minister in a proposed interim government to solve a political impasse caused by the country’s worst economic crisis in decades, a prominent lawmaker said Friday.
President Gotabaya Rajapaksa agreed that a national council will be appointed to name a new prime minister and Cabinet comprised of all parties in Parliament, lawmaker Maithripala Sirisena said after meeting with the president.
Sirisena, who was president before Rajapaksa, was a governing party lawmaker before defecting earlier this month along with nearly 40 other legislators.
However, Rohan Weliwita, a spokesperson for Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa, said the president has not communicated any intent to remove the prime minister and a decision will be announced if such a step is taken.
Sri Lanka is near bankruptcy and has announced it is suspending payments on its foreign loans until it negotiates a rescue plan with International Monetary Fund. It has to repay $7 billion in foreign debt this year, and $25 billion by 2026. Its foreign reserves stand at less than $1 billion. The foreign exchange shortage has severely limited imports, forcing people to wait in long lines to buy essentials such as food, fuel, cooking gas and medicine.
President Rajapaksa and his family have dominated nearly every aspect of life in Sri Lanka for most of the last 20 years. Protesters who have crowded the streets since March hold them responsible for the crisis and are demanding that they quit politics.
Ruling party dissidents brief India on impasse
A delegation of the ruling SLPP coalition dissidents representing the former president Maithripala Sirisena-led SLFP, has met the Indian High Commissioner in Sri Lanka Gopal Baglay and briefed him on the current political impasse in the country and plans for an interim government arrangement to address the worst economic meltdown.
Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP), one of the ruling Sri Lanka People’s Party (SLPP) constituent parties, briefed Baglay here on Thursday.
“We met the Indian High Commissioner to brief him on the interim government arrangement,” SLFP general secretary Dayasiri Jayasekera told PTI. “We described to him our idea for an all-party interim government,” Jayasekera said after meeting Baglay.
“It is not an arrangement to share the plum of office but to pull the country out of the economic mess. We have a responsibility as parliamentarians,” Jayasekera said.