Tag: SLPP

Sri Lanka President Says His Primary Aim Is To Discuss 13th Amendment With All Parties

The Amendment, a key part of the 1987 Indo-Lanka pact, called for the creation of provinces and decentralisation of powers, especially of police and land.

New Delhi: Sri Lankan President Ranil Wickremesinghe asserted on Wednesday, July 26, that he wants to discuss the 13th Amendment to the country’s constitution – a key aspect of the 1987 Indo-Lanka accord – with all parties as it is a matter that “affects the entire country”.

The 13th Amendment called for the creation of provinces and decentralisation of powers, especially of police and land. While provinces have been created with their own administrations, the powers of the police and land continued to remain in the hands of Colombo. This has created resentment among the Sri Lankan Tamil community.

Wickremesinghe held an All-Party Conference at the Presidential Secretariat on Wednesday. He highlighted that a decision on the amendment should involve inputs from all relevant parties.

The conference was organized to update the Parliament’s party leaders on the National Reconciliation Program and the North-East Development Plan, according to a statement issued by the government.

The president said that he does not have the authority to pass new laws to address existing problems and that power rests solely with parliament. He was bringing forth “relevant proposals” for the betterment of the country, but the “responsibility of implementing them lay with all the representatives in the Parliament, as he alone couldn’t achieve it with his single vote”.

India has repeatedly called for the full implementation of the 13th Amendment. However, Wickremesinghe is the sole MP of his party and his presidency is supported by the ruling Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP), which has traditionally opposed the decentralisation of powers. There is not much hope in New Delhi that the current exercise would yield any results.

President Wickremesinghe suggested that the central government should formulate policies for the country, while provincial councils should provide the necessary facilities for the successful implementation of development activities in all fields. “Collaboration between all parties and levels of government was crucial for progress and development,” he said.

He also called for “collective discussions” among all parties to decide on granting police powers to the provincial councils, as outlined in the amendment.

Furthermore, President Wickremesinghe proposed arrangements that would allow members of the Provincial Councils to concurrently hold positions and be appointed as Members of Parliament, while members of Parliament could also serve as members of the Provincial Councils.

Apart from Wickremesinghe, Prime Minister Dinesh Gunawardena, speaker Mahinda Yapa Abeywardena, opposition leader Sajith Premadasa and former president Maithripala Sirisena were among those who participated and expressed their views during the event. Numerous party leaders and representatives from various parties were also present at the occasion, the statement said.

Sri Lanka’s Election Commission Says It Has No Funds to Conduct Local Body Polls

Opposition members have been protesting against the decision to postpone the polls, accusing the government of violating the people’s right to vote.

New Delhi: Sri Lanka’s Election Commission on Monday told the country’s Supreme Court that it does not have the funds to conduct the local body polls that are scheduled for March 9.

According to Bloomberg, the commission’s chief Nimal Punchihewa said the poll body has not received financial resources and the required support from other agencies, including the government printer and police, to conduct the polls.

The lawyers for the commission filed a plea in the Supreme Court citing the inability expressed by the finance ministry to release the funds required, the government printer’s demand of payment in advance for the printing of ballot papers and the reluctance on the part of authorities to enhance the fuel quotas for election work.

Several opposition parties have filed petitions in the court seeking a writ ordering the conduct of the polls. They have claimed that the postponement of the poll was a violation of the public right to vote and accused the government of fearing the polls for the possibility of losing the election.

Sri Lanka’s parliament was adjourned on Tuesday amid protests by opposition members demanded that the polls be held without delay.

According to the news agency PTI, the election to appoint new administrations to 340 local councils for a four-year term has been postponed since March last year due to the country’s ongoing economic crisis.

The Supreme Court would hear a petition calling for the postponement of the election on February 23.

While the ruling Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP) won the majority of councils in the last election held in 2018, it has suffered major splits since the economic crisis. The party’s leaders have justified the delay by saying that the focus must remain on economic recovery, but opposition parties say it fears a suffering a loss.

“We are out here on the streets today to force the government to hold the local election. We will continue our struggle,” Sajith Premadasa, the main opposition leader, told the protesters.

Activists have also been skeptical of the government’s claim that there is not enough money to conduct polls. Rohana Hettiarachchi, the executive director of poll monitor People’s Action for Free and Fair Elections, said that raising funds will not be an issue. “Election monitors are ready to raise funds for conducting the local council elections,” he told the Sri Lankan newspaper The Island.

“If the real problem is a lack of funding, we are ready to start work this week to secure funding for the election,” he said, adding that the government should be not allowed to use the pretext of financial issues to undermine the rights of the people.

“President Ranil Wickremesinghe often talks about the devolution of power, but he has taken steps to ensure that both local and provincial council elections are not held,” he told The Island.

The president has “ensured” that both the provincial councils and the local councils do not have elected representatives, Hettiarachchi said, saying the postponement of polls will set a dangerous precedent.

Sri Lanka was hit by an unprecedented financial crisis in 2022, the worst since its independence from Britain in 1948, due to a severe paucity of foreign exchange reserves, sparking political turmoil in the country which led to the ouster of the all-powerful Rajapaksa family.

‘Start of the Marathon’: Sri Lanka Protestors Glum but Undeterred After Ranil’s Election

Activists slammed the “greedy and self-serving politicians” who voted for the new president, who is seen as close to the Rajapaksa clan.

Colombo: Gloom and frustration hit Colombo’s protestors on Wednesday, shortly after the Sri Lankan Parliament voted Ranil Wickremesinghe as the next president. But they vowed to keep up their movement. The #GoGotaGo campaign, which ousted former president Gotabaya Rajapaksa from power, had set its sights on also booting out acting president Wickramasinghe, but it failed.

Wickramasinghe, received 134 votes from parliamentarians, while Dullas Alahaperuma, a dissenting member of Rajapaksa’s party Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna, got 82 votes, and Leftist candidate Anurakumara Dossanayake finished with just three votes.

Vraie Cally Balthazaar, 37, an activist and researcher who addressed a disappointed crowd following the results, said that 134 “greedy and self-serving politicians who no longer represent us”, had helped Wickremesinghe take power.

“People want something different but parliament wants something different for themselves,” she said. “Today has been a very frustrating day, to say the least. We have been here for 103 days. We have been talking about what this struggle may lead to and today this is where we are at,” she continued. “The question now is, do we accept this? No.”

Posters says ‘Go Home Ranil’ after Wickremesinghe was elected as Sri Lanka’s President, in Colombo, July 20, 2022. Photo: Bhavya Dore

Alongside Balthazaar, a series of speakers – including various religious leaders – spoke in a mix of English, Sinhala and Tamil. Campaigners vowed to keep up the struggle, or the Aragalaya movement, which began on April 9.

Wickremesinghe, a six-time prime minister who took over as interim leader after Gotabaya Rajapaksa fled the country last week, is seen to be close to the Rajapaksa clan. “Parliament and other parties have cheated our citizens,” said Amila Egodamahawatta, 39, a lawyer. “He does not have the people’s support.”

The Presidential Secretariat, the only building that protestors continue to occupy, was quiet in the immediate hours following the results. Campaigners gathered there after 3:30 pm to give rousing speeches, denounce the new president and mark a new phase of the movement.

Also Read: Sri Lanka’s Presidential Secretariat Is Now a Buzzing Library Overseen by Protestors

“He tried to label us as fascists. He has engaged in dirty warfare,” said Harinda Fonseka, 37, a member of the movement. “But we are peace-loving, non-violent protestors. This is just the beginning of the marathon, we are undeterred.”

Bands of activists quickly turned out “Go Home Ranil” headbands, and by evening two artists had sketched a series of anti-Wickremesinghe posters that were taped to the secretariat’s pillars. The sketches effectively summed up the sentiment: Wickremesinghe is seen as a cunning deal-maker and unscrupulous politician, no different from the odious Rajapaksas.

Protestors at Sri Lanka’s Presidential Secretary in Colombo, July 20, 2022. Photo: Bhavya Dore

“I am not in a mood to speak,” said Visaka Jayaweer, 54, a theatre artist who has been protesting since the start. “We have to think of what our next move will be. It is like a chess game. They have made their move, now it is our turn.”

This reporting was supported by the International Women’s Media Foundation.

Bhavya Dore is a Mumbai-based freelance journalist.

Watch | Sri Lanka Is Now Seeing Peaceful, Non-Violent Expression of People’s Power

Analyst Paikiasothy Saravanamuttu tells Karan Thapar that the Sri Lankan peoples’ belief in democracy remains intact and will be proven whenever the country has an opportunity to hold early elections.

Paikiasothy Saravanamuttu, one of Sri Lanka’s most highly regarded political analysts, says the county is experiencing “a peaceful non-violent expression of people’s power”. He said the situation is similar to the people’s power revolution witnessed in the Philippines in 1986 when Ferdinand Marcos was driven from office and replaced by Corazon Aquino.

However, Saravanamuttu is particularly concerned by the fact that President Gotabaya Rajapaksa has only, although on two occasions, verbally said he will resign on July 13 but so far has not sent his resignation in writing to the speaker, which would formalise it. Worrying and disturbing doubts, therefore, continue about the president’s intentions. It’s even possible that he may choose to leave the country, from his present hiding-place at Katunayaka Air Base near Bandaranaike International Airport, claiming he is going abroad for medical treatment and appointing a caretaker president in his place. However, Saravanamuttu adds, that would not be acceptable to the protestors. They want nothing less than Rajapaksa’s complete resignation as well as that of the present Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe.

In a 25-minute interview with Karan Thapar for The Wire, Saravanamuttu, who is executive director of Sri Lanka’s Centre for Policy Alternatives, said it’s not clear who will succeed Rajapaksa as president in the event he resigns. There’s speculation it could be the Leader of the largest opposition party, Sajith Premadasa, himself the son of a former president, whose SJB party has only around 50 seats. He would, therefore, need the support of breakaway factions of the Rajapaksa’s SLPP party, which has a majority on its own in the Sri Lankan Parliament. Another possibility being speculated is that Premadasa could be elected president by July 20, if the present timetable laid down by the speaker of the Sri Lankan assembly is followed, with a dissident member of the SLPP as prime minister.

However, because of the uncertainty and the lack of obvious and clear-cut choices for the new president, Saravanamuttu agrees that there’s a danger the government could completely collapse without any coherent replacement, thus pushing the country towards political anarchy. In that event, one cannot completely rule out the possibility of a military takeover. Already, the Sri Lankan Army Chief has taken the unusual step of calling for calm and peace, which some have interpreted as a possible indication that he might harbour Bonapartist tendencies.

Asked about the widespread belief, after Saturday’s scenes when thousands stormed the President’s Palace, his Secretariat and the Prime Minister’s House and later, in the evening, set fire to the Prime Minister’s personal home, that Sri Lankans appear to have lost faith in both politics and politicians, Saravanamuttu said he believes their faith in democracy remains intact and will be proven whenever the country has an opportunity to hold early elections to elect a proper full-term government.

However, Saravanamuttu said what is undeniable is that Sri Lanka has “lost a decade”. He said whilst it’s possible to look down the road for up to a month or so, it’s not feasible or credible to try and look further and speak about what sort of country Sri Lanka will be six months from now, leave aside a year.

Sri Lanka Elections: The SLPP’s Formidable Majority Doesn’t Bode Well for Pluralism

History reveals that a two-third majority for Sri Lanka’s Sinhala-centric parties have led to the introduction of new constitutions that centralised state power and created divisions amongst communities.

President Gotabaya Rajapaksa’s Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP) has secured a landslide win in the general elections held last week. For an election held in Sri Lanka under the proportional representation system, this victory is an unprecedented one. With the support of its allies, the SLPP has crossed the two-third majority mark in the next parliament.

The United National Party (UNP), which contested under the leadership of former Prime Minister Ranil Wickramasinghe, could not even poll 5% of the total votes in any of the electoral districts. The party won just one seat on the National List. An alliance led by a breakaway group from the UNP under the leadership of Sajith Premadasa, who lost to Gotabaya Rajapaksa in the presidential election in November last year, has come a distant second with 54 seats in the 225-member house. The Tamil National Alliance with a base among the Tamils in the North-East of the island has secured 10 seats.

The SLPP won the Sinhala-majority districts in the South by huge margins. Outside the North-East, nearly a dozen Muslim and Malaiyaha Thamil candidates representing a few minority parties who contested as part of the opposition alliance led by Sajith Premadasa have been elected to Parliament.

The failures of the previous regime to address the economic woes of the people contributed significantly to the emergence of the SLPP as a popular alternative. Governance and policy making were characterised by fissures and instability due to in-fighting between the UNP and the Sri Lankan Freedom Party, which attempted a coalition government between 2015 and 2018 under President Maithripala Sirisena. On the other hand, southern political leaders, civil society groups, student movements and trade unions could not challenge the entrenched Sinhala majoritarianism resolutely. The absence of a progressive alternative that could capture the imagination of the people made it easier for the chauvinistic SLPP to attract votes in large numbers in the Sinhala-majority districts in both the presidential election 2019 and now the general election.

TNA’s setback

In the Tamil-majority Northern Province, the Tamil National Alliance (TNA) faced a major setback. The party secured 6 out of the 13 seats available in the region compared to the 9 seats it had won in the last general elections. A huge chunk of its Tamil voters within the province have voted for parties aligned with the SLPP which contested on a platform of development and jobs.

The TNA’s failure to address the socio-economic problems faced by its Northern and Eastern constituencies, negotiate a political solution to the national question with the previous regime in Colombo which the party supported on various occasions inside and outside of parliament, and make headway in finding justice for war-time excesses has cost the party dearly in the elections.

Also read: Explainer: Why Sri Lanka’s Election Results Are Crucial for the Rajapaksas

Within Jaffna district, a significant chunk of the TNA’s traditional voters appear to have moved towards the Tamil National People’s Front and Tamil Makkal Thesiya Kootani, parties that placed a stronger emphasis on the right to self-determination of Tamils in the North-East of the country and international investigation into the war crimes committed by the state during the last stages of the war. But their campaign, giving a central place to these issues, did not find much traction outside Jaffna. The vote share of the two parties together could not even rise above 3% in any of the three districts in the Eastern Province.

The TNA’s performance was weak in the Eastern Province too. The party won only two seats in Batticaloa and lost the single seat it had won in Ampara district in the last general elections. The shift among Tamil voters towards parties that are aligned with the government indicates that the economic concerns of the Tamil population in the North and East cannot be sidestepped by political actors who prioritise self-determination over development.

A Special Task Force member stands guard in front of a counting centre on the following day of the country’s parliamentary election in Colombo, Sri Lanka, August 6, 2020. Photo: Reuters/Dinuka Liyanawatte

Regime consolidation, militarism and the economy

Although the proportionate representation system has enabled minority communities, especially minority communities that live outside the North-East, to send their representatives to parliament in reasonable numbers, the massive victory of the SLPP, a party that occupies the far-right end of the Sinhala Buddhist ideological spectrum, poses a threat to the pluralistic cultural landscape of Sri Lanka and the peaceful coexistence of the different ethnic communities.

The country’s post-independence history reveals that the two-third majority that Sri Lanka’s Sinhala-centric parties secured in the past led to the introduction of new constitutions that centralised state power and created divisions among the communities. Such powerful regimes also crushed democratic protests and trade union activism.

With the electoral success last week, the regime consolidation which began in the early months of 2020 following Gotabaya Rajapaksa’s victory in the presidential is expected to go full swing. Since his inauguration, President Rajapaksa has permitted a greater role for the military in the governance of the country. Ex-military officials who backed him in his bid for the presidency were appointed to top administrative positions within various ministries and presidential task forces and committees.

Also read: Sri Lanka’s COVID-19 Response Is Proof That Demonisation of Minorities Has Been Normalised

The military has also played a major role in handling the COVID-19 pandemic, sometimes to the exclusion and marginalisation of medical professionals. With the victory in the parliamentary elections, an emboldened president might make new moves to expand the participation of the military in governance.

The COVID-19 crisis has created instability in the everyday lives of the people, although the government appears to have been successful in controlling the spread of the virus. The government’s economic relief to the poor during this crisis has not been adequate. Educational activities at schools and some universities have resumed only for a segment of the student population. Students from economically marginalised families and rural areas with limited or no access to the internet find it difficult to participate in classes conducted online. The tourism and hotel industries have suffered huge losses. The country might face a major economic crisis in the next few months. How will the government handle this crisis? Will it introduce welfare measures through re-distribution of wealth and resources? Will it resort to repression and authoritarianism as what Sri Lanka experienced during the previous Rajapaksa regime?

The previous Rajapaksa regime

A man wearing a protective mask walks along a painted wall in Colombo, Sri Lanka, April 8, 2020. Photo: REUTERS/Dinuka Liyanawatte

The Mahinda Rajapaksa regime that ruled Sri Lanka between 2005 and 2015, especially during its second term that started in 2010, adopted neoliberal economic policies that widened the faultlines with the Sinhala community. Waves of protests by workers in free trade zones, fishermen’s associations, students and university teachers exposed the government’s failures on the economic front. The government and its chauvinistic allies like the Bodu Bala Sena tried to deflect people’s attention from the economic miseries they faced towards divisive campaigns that demonised the Muslims. However, this trend could not be sustained for long.

In the North and East, the regime failed to address the political and economic concerns of the war-affected populations. Rural indebtedness increased due to microfinance schemes introduced by predatory companies. The people in the region had little or no control over the mega-development schemes designed and implemented in a centralized manner.

Also read: Sri Lanka’s New President Gotabaya: The View From New Delhi

Tamil groups in the North launched protests against militarisation and land grab. Tamils’ attempts to memorialize the end of the civil war and militants who died during the armed struggle were often crushed by the military. Mahinda Rajapaksa’s defeat in 2015 happened mainly due to the economic failures of his regime, protests led by workers and minorities and a consolidation of democratic forces from all communities.

What does the future look like?

While some of the problems that bedevilled Sri Lanka during the previous Rajapaksa regime may re-emerge following the SLPP’s victory, the statements made by the current President and his top officers and some of the measures his government has taken so far to address important economic and political issues indicate that the new regime will move in a more militaristic and technocratic direction with moves to strengthen the power bloc comprising military officers and Buddhist monks who back the President.

The government appears to be keen to introduce key amendments to the constitution that might empower the executive president, dismantle the constitutional council which was created with a view to reducing political interference in the appointment members to various important commissions and even abolish the 13th amendment introduced via the Indo-Lanka Accord of 1987, which allows a small measure of autonomy to the nine provinces.

The militaristic, centralised approach to governance that the new dispensation is expected to adopt will not help the economic revival of the communities affected by the ongoing COVID-19 crisis. It is feared that the state might resort to authoritarianism in responding to protests and social unrest that an economic crisis might trigger. The surveillance mechanisms of the state have already expanded. Recent witch-hunts against activists from the Muslim community and dissidents, fund-cuts to the Open University of Sri Lanka, attempts to slash the independence of higher educational institutions, and increased Buddhist symbolism in the activities of the government all suggest that the state might take a more authoritarian and Sinhala nationalist turn in the future rather than support the welfare of the people.

Tamils and Muslims in the Northern and Eastern Provinces are anxious that Buddhisization of these two provinces may take an aggressive turn under the new regime. Tamil activists in the region also worry that the ultranationalist SLPP may even try to settle Sinhalese from the South in the two provinces in order to weaken the Tamils’ demand for self-rule in the region. Following the Easter Sunday attacks, the Muslim community all across the island has been facing increased threats from chauvinistic elements.

Also read: Sri Lanka, India and China: Here’s What Keeps Neighbours Friendly – and What Doesn’t

In order to challenge the existent and emerging forms of majoritarianism and authoritarianism, all forces that uphold democracy, pluralism and social justice in the island should work together. With the regime enjoying a two-third majority in parliament, key battles around economy, pluralism, independence of institutions and autonomy for the Northern and Eastern Provinces will have to be waged outside parliament. A consolidation of democratic forces and working people cutting across ethnic divides is going to be crucial in charting our resistance to the majoritarian, militaristic populism that Sri Lanka has now firmly been pushed into.

Mahendran Thiruvarangan is attached to the Department of Linguistics & English at the University of Jaffna.

Sri Lanka: Sirisena Stares at Impending Exodus as Rajapaksa’s Son Quits Party

His bargaining power in the remaining months as President is going to weaken, dwindling his opportunity to run for presidency as a common candidate in an SLFP-SLPP electoral alliance.

Colombo: Sri Lankan President Maithripala Sirisena’s decision to dissolve the parliament on November 9 as a solution to a bourgeoning political crisis seems to be having the reverse effect. At least three political parties are now determined to challenge the dissolution in court in the coming week while Sirisena’s own party members have begun defecting to the Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP), a new political party headed by former minister and Rajapaksa loyalist, Professor G.L. Peiris.

Leading the way, parliamentarian and Rajapaksa’s son Namal Rajapaksa obtained SLPP membership on November 10. “We will strive to create a broader coalition with many stakeholders under the leadership of Maithripala Sirisena & Mahinda Rajapaksa to face the upcoming general election and come out victorious,” Namal Rajapaksa said in Twitter post.

Namal Rajapaksa.

Immediately, there were at least two other responses from young SLFP members, Kanchana Wijesekera and Shehan Semasinghe, indicating their decision to join the SLPP, a trend that is expected to grow during the period of nominations. 

Meanwhile, the news website economynext.com and several others claimed that Mahinda Rajapaksa too has renounced his SLFP membership in favour of the SLPP. Sirisena’s prime ministerial appointee is now garnering support from all parties to cobble a broad coalition to face the forthcoming general election while his very appointment is expected to be challenged in court this week.

Also read: Srisena’s Assaults on Democracy Make a Mockery of Parliamentary System

Until now, Rajapaksa, a former SLFP leader and then patron, has not severed his official link with the currently Sirisena-led SLFP.

SLPP emerged the strongest political party in the local elections held in February, pushing Wickremsinghe’s UNP to the second and the Sirisena-led SLFP to the third place.

However, observers claim that the new move by Rajapaksa loyalists is not only calculated to secure electoral victory but is also aimed at further reducing the SLFP’s footprint in Sri Lankan electoral politics. Besides, it will also weaken Sirisena’s bargaining power in the remaining months as President, dwindling his opportunity to run for presidency as a common candidate in an SLFP-SLPP electoral alliance. 

But all is not well within the Rajapaksa camp. While his appointment has been a source of joy to sections of the populace, international community has responded either negatively or passively to the October 26 appointment.

Only the Chinese and the Pakistani envoys paid courtesy calls on the former president after being appointed Prime Minister.

The United Nations, the European Union and the United States have expressed serious concern over the turn of events in Sri Lanka and have called for adherence to democratic norms and respect for constitutional rule.

Also read: The Political is Personal: An Essay in Despair from Sri Lanka

Sources confirmed that the Sri Lankan foreign ministry has not received a single congratulatory message from any country over the appointment of Rajapaksa to date, an indication that the world is not eager to endorse Sirisena’s style of replacing a serving prime minister.

Meanwhile, three political parties intend to challenge the dissolution of parliament as a violation of the constitution.

Leading the campaign is the UNP’s frontliner and former finance and media minister Mangala Samaraweera, who claimed the dissolution was an undemocratic act “to suit political ambitions of a few.”

The United National Party, the northern-based Tamil National Alliance (TNA) and the Marxist Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP) will challenge the dissolution, what Samaraweera termed as “tyranny” and “hitting the constitution in its teeth.”

The basis for challenging, Samaraweera said, lies in the 19th Amendment to the constitution, signed off by President Sirisena himself in the afterglow of presidential victory in 2015, which stipulates that a dissolution can take place upon completing four-and-a-half years. The November 9 dissolution comes one-and-a-half years ahead of schedule.

Samaraweera insists that since the House was dissolved while one party had a working majority, the dissolution is mala fide and undemocratic. “The election was announced to deny the party with a working majority to continue in government,” he said.

Speaking to The Wire, Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP) leader Anura Kuamar Dissanayake said the announcement of a snap poll is unacceptable primarily because it violates the 19th Amendment to the constitution and second, if the desired result is not achieved, there is the threat of the president taking further undemocratic steps, causing extensive political instability.

“This is a reaction poll, not a democratic call for elections,” said Dissanayake.

The dissolution seems to have deepened the political crisis that was triggered by Sirisena’a replacing of Ranil Wickremesinghe with former president Mahinda Rajapaksa, rather than abate it.

Sri Lanka's ousted Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe arrives at a news conference in Colombo, Sri Lanka October 27, 2018.

Sri Lanka’s ousted Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe arrives at a news conference in Colombo, Sri Lanka October 27, 2018. Credit: Reuters/Dinuka Liyanawatte

The ousted Wickremesinghe continues to occupy Temple Trees, the prime minister’s official residence, while the caretaker prime minister of Sirisena’s choice, Rajapaksa, operates from the prime minister’s office in Colombo.

When called by the UNP and speaker Karu Jayasuriya to face the floor test allowing Wickremesinghe or Rajapaksa to effectively demonstrate their majority, Sirisena announced a snap general election when it became clear that his side could not garner the 113 members needed.

However, even as the Gazette extraordinaire 2096/70 of November 9, 2018 was being dispatched for printing at the government’s printer, an undeterred Sirisena swore in three more Cabinet ministers. 

Dilrukshi Handunnetti is a Colombo-based journalist and lawyer.