Sri Lanka President Initiates Negotiations With Opposition To Form All-Party Government

Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP) of former president Miathripala Sirisena and National Freedom Front (NFF) led by MP Wimal Weerawansa have pledged support to Wickremesinghe initiative.

Newly elected Sri Lankan President Ranil Wickremesinghe is in talks with Opposition parties to form an all-party government led by him as part of his efforts to establish trust in his administration, in order to help the country come out of the worst economic crisis, according to a PTI report. The talks are expected to finish in a week. 

While the main Opposition Samagi Jana Balawegaya (SJB) party will not join the government, several of its MPs have shown interest to join the ruling part individualy, the PTI report said. 

Wickremesinghe on Thursday also held talks with the Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP) of former president Miathripala Sirisena.

The National Freedom Front (NFF) led by MP Wimal Weerawansa pledged support to Wickremesinghe. The party leader said that there were two options before the country - to either lead it down the path of an anarchical situation as in Haiti or to salvage it from the current mess at least at the last moment through consensus, PTI reported. 

President Wickremesinghe had taken genuine steps to resurrect the country from the present abyss and therefore his party was ready to guide that exercise regardless of past political differences or enmity, he added. 

Minister of Justice Wijeyadasa Rajapakshe on Thursday informed that all parties were invited to form the all-party government he said that the government will wait for a limited period of time for other parties to come to join. He added that the government is trying to establish trust within the democracy and resolve the socio-political crises within Sri Lanka with this move.

Wickremesinghe was elected as the country's new president after a  majority of the vote came from lawmakers representing ousted President Rajapaksa's Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP) party.

There were only two non-SLPP lawmakers in the Cabinet appointed on Friday. Constitutionally, the Cabinet can be extended up to 30 members.

The president on Wednesday said that his government’s two main priorities are to fix the country's ailing economy and end the severe fuel shortage that has exacerbated after the last shipment under the Indian credit line arrived in the country in June.

(With PTI inputs)