'New PM, Cabinet Without Any Rajapaksa': Sri Lanka Prez Assures Citizens Amid Nationwide Protests

President Gotabaya said that whoever has the majority, his government will be formed.

Soldiers stand guard near an armoured vehicle at a check point in Colombo. (Image: AFP)

New Delhi: Amid the country's worst-ever economic crisis, Sri Lankan President Gotabaya Rajapaksa addressed the country on Wednesday and said within the next one week a new Prime Minister would be appointed and the cabinet would be elected soon. “This week I will appoint a Prime Minister and Cabinet that can command a majority in Parliament and can gain the confidence of the people of the country," he said. "The new government's Prime Minister will be awarded the opportunity to produce a new program and take this country forward," he added.

Sri Lankan President Rajapaksa says constitutional amendment will be moved in Parliament to empower the House with more powers

— Press Trust of India (@PTI_News) May 11, 2022

"I will appoint a young cabinet without any of the Rajapaksas," Gotabaya said, as he started talks with political parties to stop the country from sliding into anarchy. Minutes before his address, Gotabaya held talks with former prime minister Ranil Wickremesinghe.

"The new government's Prime Minister will be given the opportunity to produce a new program and take this country forward," he added.

Speaking on the violence, the President said what happened on Monday was very unfortunate. "The murders, assaults, acts of intimidation, destruction of property, and the series of heinous acts that followed cannot be justified at all," Gotabaya

Sri Lanka has been without a government since the most recent two days after President Gotabaya's elder brother and Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa resigned, clearing a path to shape an all-party interim government.

President also spoke on the violence that took place in the nation earlier this week.

"The murders, assaults, acts of intimidation, destruction of property, and the series of heinous acts that followed cannot be justified at all," the President said.

"Steps will be taken to strictly enforce the law against those who planned, aided, promoted, and are connected to these events," Gotabaya said while urging everyone to maintain calm.

Earlier in the day, 11 parties sent letters to President nominating 3 names for the vacant PM post.

A nationwide curfew was imposed from Monday until Wednesday and the military was deployed to maintain law and order. Mahinda Rajapaksa resigned as Sri Lanka's PM on Monday as violent protests broke out.

Since the independence of Sri Lanka in 1948, the country is facing the biggest economic crisis ever.