Sri Lanka: Wickremesinghe Back as Prime Minister as Crisis Deepens
Manas Dasgupta
NEW DELHI, May 12: The veteran political leader and the four time former prime minister Ranil Wickremesinghe has returned at the helm of affairs in Sri Lanka in a bid to restore stability in the island nation in the midst of a political impasse and stifling economic crisis.
The 73-year-old was administered the oath of office on Thursday by the President of the crisis-hit island nation Gotabaya Rajapaksa who in an address to the nation on Wednesday had declared that a Prime Minister and his cabinet will be put in place this week.
This is the sixth time Wickremesinghe has been appointed to the office — he has never finished a full term — and will have the task of arresting the devastating impact of the island’s economic downturn that too under the current president who is fiercely detested by disgruntled citizens demanding his resignation.
With the country’s largest opposition party refusing to join a government headed by a member of the Rajapaksa clan, Wickremesinghe though only a one-man show for his party the United National Party, appeared as the only available option. Wickremesinghe heads the UNP, the breakaway SJB faction of the party which currently forms the principal opposition party.
Following the appointment of Ranil Wickremesinghe as the Prime Minister of Sri Lanka, the Indian High Commission said it “looks forward to working with the new government formed in accordance with democratic processes”. “India’s commitment to people of Sri Lanka will continue,” the High Commission added.
Sri Lanka’s stocks index on Thursday jumped over three per cent after being closed for two days on the speculation of the appointment of a new Prime Minister and political stability in the island nation.
Sri Lankan Parliament will debate a no-confidence motion against President Rajapaksa on May 17, the Speaker’s Office confirmed on Thursday, amid the ongoing political turmoil triggered by the worst economic crisis plaguing the debt-ridden country. The decision was taken during the party leaders’ meeting on Thursday. The motion would be taken up for debate after obtaining special approval from Parliament, media report said.
Already struggling with the most devastating economic crisis since Independence, Sri Lanka was plunged into chaos on Monday with the president’s elder brother Mahinda Rajapaksa resigned as the prime minister hours after his supporters violently attacked the anti-government protesters nulling the elected government.
Wickremesinghe’s UNP was decimated in the 2020 general elections in which the Rajapaksas secured a two-thirds majority. Wickremesinghe is currently the only member of Parliament from his party. Although he lost the 2020 general elections, the UNP nominated him to legislature on the national list, through Sri Lanka’s proportional representation system that allocates political parties a certain number of seats based on total votes polled.
Just ahead of the 2020 poll Wickremesinghe’s former deputy Sajith Premadasa broke away from the UNP and formed the Samagi Jana Balawegaya (SJB or United People’s Force), the main Opposition party now. Wickremesinghe’s majority in Parliament is contingent on substantial support from the ruling party. Most of its members have promised to back him, according to political sources.
With widespread shortages of food and fuel, soaring prices of essential commodities and hours-long power cut, there have been massive protests over the government’s handling of the situation. On Monday, groups of pro and anti-government activists clashed in Colombo, triggering curfew and a state of emergency across the island.
In his address yesterday, President Rajapaksa had said to “control the current situation, and prevent the country from heading towards anarchy”, he would appoint a Prime Minister and cabinet “that can command a majority in Parliament and can gain the confidence of the people of the country.”
Meanwhile, the Opposition Leader Sajith Premadasa too said he was willing to form a new government if the President committed to stepping down within “a minimum time frame.” Premadasa made his offer conditional, seeking new laws to strengthen parliament and abolish Executive Presidency.
Even before Wickremesinghe was sworn in by the President, some religious leaders objected to the move, contending that it was “not the solution” people want, and that it would further escalate the crisis.
The political opposition too expressed strong disapproval at the President’s choice. Leader of the leftist Janata Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP) Anura Kumara Dissanayake said: “Ranil protects the Rajapaksas, and the Rajapaksas protect Ranil. No citizen in this country will fall for their conspiracy this time.”
Tamil National Alliance lawmaker M.A. Sumanthiran said: “The President has completely lost legitimacy, people want him to go home, and the Parliament will soon vote on a motion expressing displeasure over him. Wickremesinghe had no legitimacy in the current Parliament right from the beginning. He did not even win in his constituency.”
Meanwhile, a Sri Lankan court on Thursday issued a travel ban on erstwhile prime minister Mahinda Rajapaksa, his son Namal Rajapaksa and 15 others. Mahinda is currently under protection at the Trincomalee naval base. The Fort Magistrate’s Court barred them from travelling overseas due to the investigations taking place on the attacks on the GotaGoGama and MynaGoGama peaceful protest sites on Monday, Reuters quoted media reports as saying.
