Sri Lankan President Gotabaya Rajapaksha has finally resigned from his post. Mahinda Yapa Abeywardana, the speaker of the Sri Lankan Parliament has accordingly accepted Gotabaya’s resignation.
He had emailed his resignation from Singapore. Rajapaksha first fle
d to the Maldives and then sought refuge in the city-state of Singapore. He is on a run because protesters in the crisis-hit country overran his home at the weekend. People broke into his heavily secured fortress and tried to burn down the house.
Reason for President Gotabaya’s resignation
The island nation is under a serious debt crisis as well as facing a huge shortage of fuel, food, medicine and other essentials. Several indicators have pointed out poor government mismanagement as the main reason for the crisis. Moreover, the dynasty politics in the country has led to rampant corruption. Crisp notes worth US$50,000 were found in his house by the agitating protestors.
This angered the 22 million people of Sri Lanka, who have been protesting against the government in the streets for a few months. The crisis is deepening and the nation still has a long way to go.
Rajapaksha was once known as the “Terminator” because he ruthlessly crushed the Tamil rebels. He has become the first Sri Lankan head of state (President) to resign since the nation adopted an executive presidency in the 1970s.
Under the provisions of the Sri Lankan Constitution, Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe will act as the acting President due to President Gotabaya’s resignation till further elections. The Speaker has promised that the legislature will be summoned on Saturday. The election process will take place “within seven days.”
The newly elected government in the nation will have a mammoth task to handle. They will need to negotiate with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and other partner countries. Meanwhile, the state needs to boost its economy by proactively engaging in tourism.
