People Know "Who I Am, What I Am": Sri Lanka PM Says He Wont Resign

Colombo: Sri Lanka's embattled Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa on Wednesday said that President Gotabaya Rajapaksa has not asked him to resign and claimed that they were on the "same page" to resolve the worst economic crisis, amidst reports of a rift between the two brothers in running the debt-ridden island nation. Mahinda Rajapaksa's assertion came on a day when the Sri Lankan media reported that President Gotabaya Rajapaksa has written to the leaders of political parties affiliated with the government that they could meet on Friday and discuss on an All-Party Government that can be formed after the Prime Minister and Cabinet resigned. In his letter, the President noted that he had taken into consideration the requests made by the country's top Buddhist leaders, religious leaders, as well as those from political parties and civil organisations. Sri Lanka is currently in the throes of an unprecedented economic turmoil since its independence from Britain in 1948. The crisis is caused in part by a lack of foreign currency, which has meant that the country cannot afford to pay for imports of staple foods and fuel, leading to acute shortages and very high prices. Earlier this month, President Gotabaya Rajapaksa had to drop his older brother Chamal and the eldest nephew Namal from the Cabinet in response to the ongoing protests which called for accountability from the powerful ruling family and their inability to address the worst forex crisis faced by the country. In the second week of April, the Sri Lankan government said it would temporarily default on its USD 35.5 billion in foreign debt. The finance ministry said the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and the war in Ukraine made it impossible to pay its creditors. Now the beleaguered president is also under increasing pressure to form an interim government. President Gotabaya Rajapaksa had said that he would hand over the government to any group that could muster 113 seats in the 225-member Parliament but would not step down from the presidency. Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa also last week stressed that there was no need for him to resign or to allow the formation of an interim government without his leadership.

Colombo: Sri Lanka's embattled Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa on Wednesday said that President Gotabaya Rajapaksa has not asked him to resign and claimed that they were on the "same page" to resolve the worst economic crisis, amidst reports of a rift between the two brothers in running the debt-ridden island nation. Mahinda Rajapaksa's assertion came on a day when the Sri Lankan media reported that President Gotabaya Rajapaksa has written to the leaders of political parties affiliated with the government that they could meet on Friday and discuss on an All-Party Government that can be formed after the Prime Minister and Cabinet resigned. In his letter, the President noted that he had taken into consideration the requests made by the country's top Buddhist leaders, religious leaders, as well as those from political parties and civil organisations. Sri Lanka is currently in the throes of an unprecedented economic turmoil since its independence from Britain in 1948. The crisis is caused in part by a lack of foreign currency, which has meant that the country cannot afford to pay for imports of staple foods and fuel, leading to acute shortages and very high prices. Earlier this month, President Gotabaya Rajapaksa had to drop his older brother Chamal and the eldest nephew Namal from the Cabinet in response to the ongoing protests which called for accountability from the powerful ruling family and their inability to address the worst forex crisis faced by the country. In the second week of April, the Sri Lankan government said it would temporarily default on its USD 35.5 billion in foreign debt. The finance ministry said the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and the war in Ukraine made it impossible to pay its creditors. Now the beleaguered president is also under increasing pressure to form an interim government. President Gotabaya Rajapaksa had said that he would hand over the government to any group that could muster 113 seats in the 225-member Parliament but would not step down from the presidency. Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa also last week stressed that there was no need for him to resign or to allow the formation of an interim government without his leadership.Colombo: Sri Lanka's embattled Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa on Wednesday said that President Gotabaya Rajapaksa has not asked him to resign and claimed that they were on the "same page" to resolve the worst economic crisis, amidst reports of a rift between the two brothers in running the debt-ridden island nation. Mahinda Rajapaksa's assertion came on a day when the Sri Lankan media reported that President Gotabaya Rajapaksa has written to the leaders of political parties affiliated with the government that they could meet on Friday and discuss on an All-Party Government that can be formed after the Prime Minister and Cabinet resigned. In his letter, the President noted that he had taken into consideration the requests made by the country's top Buddhist leaders, religious leaders, as well as those from political parties and civil organisations. Sri Lanka is currently in the throes of an unprecedented economic turmoil since its independence from Britain in 1948. The crisis is caused in part by a lack of foreign currency, which has meant that the country cannot afford to pay for imports of staple foods and fuel, leading to acute shortages and very high prices. Earlier this month, President Gotabaya Rajapaksa had to drop his older brother Chamal and the eldest nephew Namal from the Cabinet in response to the ongoing protests which called for accountability from the powerful ruling family and their inability to address the worst forex crisis faced by the country. In the second week of April, the Sri Lankan government said it would temporarily default on its USD 35.5 billion in foreign debt. The finance ministry said the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and the war in Ukraine made it impossible to pay its creditors. Now the beleaguered president is also under increasing pressure to form an interim government. President Gotabaya Rajapaksa had said that he would hand over the government to any group that could muster 113 seats in the 225-member Parliament but would not step down from the presidency. Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa also last week stressed that there was no need for him to resign or to allow the formation of an interim government without his leadership.Colombo: Sri Lanka's embattled Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa on Wednesday said that President Gotabaya Rajapaksa has not asked him to resign and claimed that they were on the "same page" to resolve the worst economic crisis, amidst reports of a rift between the two brothers in running the debt-ridden island nation. Mahinda Rajapaksa's assertion came on a day when the Sri Lankan media reported that President Gotabaya Rajapaksa has written to the leaders of political parties affiliated with the government that they could meet on Friday and discuss on an All-Party Government that can be formed after the Prime Minister and Cabinet resigned. In his letter, the President noted that he had taken into consideration the requests made by the country's top Buddhist leaders, religious leaders, as well as those from political parties and civil organisations. Sri Lanka is currently in the throes of an unprecedented economic turmoil since its independence from Britain in 1948. The crisis is caused in part by a lack of foreign currency, which has meant that the country cannot afford to pay for imports of staple foods and fuel, leading to acute shortages and very high prices. Earlier this month, President Gotabaya Rajapaksa had to drop his older brother Chamal and the eldest nephew Namal from the Cabinet in response to the ongoing protests which called for accountability from the powerful ruling family and their inability to address the worst forex crisis faced by the country. In the second week of April, the Sri Lankan government said it would temporarily default on its USD 35.5 billion in foreign debt. The finance ministry said the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and the war in Ukraine made it impossible to pay its creditors. Now the beleaguered president is also under increasing pressure to form an interim government. President Gotabaya Rajapaksa had said that he would hand over the government to any group that could muster 113 seats in the 225-member Parliament but would not step down from the presidency. Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa also last week stressed that there was no need for him to resign or to allow the formation of an interim government without his leadership.Colombo: Sri Lanka's embattled Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa on Wednesday said that President Gotabaya Rajapaksa has not asked him to resign and claimed that they were on the "same page" to resolve the worst economic crisis, amidst reports of a rift between the two brothers in running the debt-ridden island nation. Mahinda Rajapaksa's assertion came on a day when the Sri Lankan media reported that President Gotabaya Rajapaksa has written to the leaders of political parties affiliated with the government that they could meet on Friday and discuss on an All-Party Government that can be formed after the Prime Minister and Cabinet resigned. In his letter, the President noted that he had taken into consideration the requests made by the country's top Buddhist leaders, religious leaders, as well as those from political parties and civil organisations. Sri Lanka is currently in the throes of an unprecedented economic turmoil since its independence from Britain in 1948. The crisis is caused in part by a lack of foreign currency, which has meant that the country cannot afford to pay for imports of staple foods and fuel, leading to acute shortages and very high prices. Earlier this month, President Gotabaya Rajapaksa had to drop his older brother Chamal and the eldest nephew Namal from the Cabinet in response to the ongoing protests which called for accountability from the powerful ruling family and their inability to address the worst forex crisis faced by the country. In the second week of April, the Sri Lankan government said it would temporarily default on its USD 35.5 billion in foreign debt. The finance ministry said the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and the war in Ukraine made it impossible to pay its creditors. Now the beleaguered president is also under increasing pressure to form an interim government. President Gotabaya Rajapaksa had said that he would hand over the government to any group that could muster 113 seats in the 225-member Parliament but would not step down from the presidency. Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa also last week stressed that there was no need for him to resign or to allow the formation of an interim government without his leadership.Colombo: Sri Lanka's embattled Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa on Wednesday said that President Gotabaya Rajapaksa has not asked him to resign and claimed that they were on the "same page" to resolve the worst economic crisis, amidst reports of a rift between the two brothers in running the debt-ridden island nation. Mahinda Rajapaksa's assertion came on a day when the Sri Lankan media reported that President Gotabaya Rajapaksa has written to the leaders of political parties affiliated with the government that they could meet on Friday and discuss on an All-Party Government that can be formed after the Prime Minister and Cabinet resigned. In his letter, the President noted that he had taken into consideration the requests made by the country's top Buddhist leaders, religious leaders, as well as those from political parties and civil organisations. Sri Lanka is currently in the throes of an unprecedented economic turmoil since its independence from Britain in 1948. The crisis is cau