2 yıl önce

Sri Lanka's ousted leader Rajapaksa defends crisis efforts

In his resignation letter to parliament, Gotabaya Rajapaksa says he did his "utmost" to avoid an economic catastrophe in Sri Lanka, but the coronavirus pandemic derailed his efforts.

Reuters

Over 100 police and security personnel with assault rifles were deployed on the approach road to parliament on Saturday, manning barricades and a water cannon to prevent any unrest.

Sri Lanka’s ousted president Gotabaya Rajapaksa, who fled overseas to escape a popular uprising against his government, has said he took "all possible steps" to avert the economic crisis that engulfed the nation.

The country's parliament met on Saturday to begin the process of electing a new president, as a shipment of fuel arrived to provide some relief to the crisis-hit nation.

During the proceedings Dhammika Dasanayake, the secretary general of Sri Lanka’s parliament, formally read out Rajapaksa’s resignation letter, the contents of which have not previously been made public.

In his letter Rajapaksa said Sri Lanka’s financial crisis was rooted in years of economic mismanagement that pre-dated his presidency.

He also blamed the Covid-19 pandemic for drastically reducing Sri Lanka’s tourist arrivals and remittances from foreign workers.

"It is my personal belief that I took all possible steps to address this crisis, including inviting parliamentarians to form an all-party or unity government," the letter said.

Rajapaksa's resignation was accepted by parliament on Friday.

He flew to the Maldives and then to Singapore after hundreds of thousands of anti-government protesters came out on the streets of Colombo a week ago and occupied his official residence and offices.

Presidential nominees

Parliament will next meet on Tuesday to accept nominations for the post of president. A vote to decide the country's leader is set to take place on Wednesday.

Six-time prime minister Ranil Wickremesinghe, an ally of the Rajapaksas who is the sole representative of his party in parliament, has been sworn in as acting president until then.

Wickremesinghe, who protesters want gone too, was selected as the ruling party's candidate for president on Friday, leading to the prospect of further unrest should he be elected.

The opposition's presidential nominee is Sajith Premadasa, while the potential dark horse is senior ruling party lawmaker Dullas Alahapperuma.

Over 100 police and security personnel with assault rifles were deployed on the approach road to parliament on Saturday, manning barricades and a water cannon to prevent any unrest.

Meanwhile, Sri Lanka received the first of three fuel shipments on Saturday, Energy Minister Kanchana Wijesekera said. These are the first shipments to reach the country in about three weeks.