Sri Lanka’s parliament convened on Wednesday, 20th July 2022 for an election that saw Ranil Wickremesinghe, 73 become the country’s president after his predecessor Gotabaya Rajapaka fled a popular uprising over the Islands economic crisis and resigned.
As the leader of the oldest political party,Mr Wickremesinghe is a six time prime minister, a lawyer and an economist who started his political career in the country’s 1977 parliamentary elections.
Viewed by many as a shrewd political operator who’s managed to cling on in parliament despite his party being wiped out in the 2020 election, Mr Wickremesinghe is also known as a prolific economic technocrat who many believe will restore the country’s ailing economic status.
After trailing his opponent by a staggering 50 vote margin, the president-elect called for unity and patriotism moving forward.”we are in very difficult times and headed for big challenges but we must keep cohesion to overcome the challenges together”. His victory on Wednesday means he will serve out the rest of the presidential term which stretches upto November 2024.
We feel that Ranil Wickremesinghe is the only person with the experience, the know-how and the capacity to provide solutions to the economic crisis,” General Secretary Sagara Kariyawasam told the Reuters news agency.
According to BBC, Ranil assumed the job as acting president last week and he ordered the military to do whatever was necessary to restore public order, following protesters storming and occupying government buildings, he further extended a national state of emergency order this week to stamp out any potential uprisings.
Mr Wickremesinghe’s immediate challenges include sourcing fuel supplies and managing the public discontent which will mean working on removing the bitterness, anger and disappointment within society.
Sri Lanka is an island nation off southern India. It won independence from British rule in 1948. 70 % of the country’s 22 million people practice Buddhism. Sri Lanka has been wrecked with protests for months amidst acute food shortages, fuel exigency and the hiking of prices for the basic supplies.
About The Author
