Sri Lanka president expands cabinet amid financial crisis protests

Sri Lanka president expands cabinet amid financial crisis protests

Sri Lanka president expands cabinet amid financial crisis protests

Sri Lanka president expands cabinet amid financial crisis protests

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Sri Lanka’s President Gotabaya Rajapaksa has appointed a brand new 17-member cabinet, but it does not encompass members of his own family who had been dropped as protests erupted over the authorities’ dealing with of a devastating economic crisis.

The president’s elder brother, Mahinda Rajapaksa, but remains the high minister.

The island state of 22 million is suffering from extended power cuts and gasoline and medicine  shortages, caused with the aid of a sharp fall in its forex reserves that has stalled imports of necessities and brought heaps out on the streets.

Rajapaksa’s authorities is ready to start talks with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) on Monday for a loan program, and analysts have flagged political instability as a chance in Sri Lanka finding a manner out of financial turmoil.

Faced with developing famous unrest, Rajapaksa dissolved his cabinet in advance this month and invited all parties in the parliament to shape a team spirit government, an offer that become rejected by using competition companies and individuals of the ruling alliance.

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“Seventeen new cupboard ministers were sworn in earlier than President Gotabaya Rajapaksa on the President’s Secretariat today morning,” a assertion from the president’s workplace said.

Only five participants of the preceding cabinet had been sworn in again, even as maximum of the other portfolios have been allotted to participants of the ruling Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna.

“The Cabinet portfolios held by way of the President and Prime Minister have now not changed,” the announcement said.

Besides Mahinda Rajapaksa, no different member of the family is within the new cabinet.

Another two of the president’s brothers, Basil and Chamal Rajapaksa, and the prime minister’s son, Namal Rajapaksa, have been a part of the outgoing cabinet, and were now not re-appointed.

Thousands of Sri Lankans have been protesting outside the president’s office inside the commercial capital Colombo for over per week, requesting the Rajapaksas to end government.

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Economic mismanagement by successive governments weakened Sri Lanka’s public budget, but the state of affairs changed into exacerbated with the aid of deep tax cuts enacted by way of the Rajapaksa management quickly after it took workplace in 2019.

Key sectors of the financial system, specifically tourism, where then battered via the COVID-19 pandemic, and the authorities dragged its feet on coming near the IMF for assist.

Last week, the united states of America’s vital financial institution stated it became unilaterally suspending external debt payments, the use of its paltry overseas reserves of about $1.93bn for importing vital items rather.

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