Sri Lanka Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa has agreed to step down amid a crippling financial crisis. Mahinda has so far fended off criticism for handling the country's economy. The PM is likely to step down this week, Cabinet spokesperson Dr Nalaka Godahewa told economynext. “The final decision may be taken in a few days. Even tomorrow by PM,” Godahewa said.
Mahinda has been reluctant to step down. He was reportedly hooted at and jeered by protesters amid calls to resign when he visited Anuradhapura on Sunday. A decision will be taken at a cabinet meeting today
Amid relentless protests, President Gotabaya Rajapaksa had, on Friday, imposed an emergency, the second one in just over a month. On Friday, Gotabaya had also asked Mahinda to step down. He had then approached the leader of the opposition party Samagi Jana Balawegaya (SJB) Sajith Premadasa to form an interim government. The invite was rejected by Premadasa.
SJB National Organizer Tissa Attanayake told Daily Mirror, “We will only support an interim government which will carry out proposals made by the Bar Association of Sri Lanka.”
Sri Lanka's economic crisis took a turn for the worse after the Covid-19 pandemic. Sri Lanka's inability to pay for fuel imports has commoners facing blackouts. People have been queueing at service stations to buy petrol and kerosene.
