Sri Lanka Upheaval : To Pave The Way For An All-Party Government, Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe Resigns, Private Residence Set Ablaze By Agitated Protestors

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Sri Lanka’s Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe announced his resignation after meeting of party leaders presided over by the speaker. The party leaders had decided to ask both Wickremesinghe and Gotabaya to resign from their posts to make way for an all-party government.

He made the announcement on Twitter: “To ensure the continuation of the Government including the safety of all citizens I accept the best recommendation of the Party Leaders today, to make way for an All-Party Government. To facilitate this I will resign as Prime Minister.”

To ensure the continuation of the Government including the safety of all citizens I accept the best recommendation of the Party Leaders today, to make way for an All-Party Government.

To facilitate this I will resign as Prime Minister.

— Ranil Wickremesinghe (@RW_UNP) July 9, 2022

The Prime Minister’s Media Division said that Wickremesinghe will resign after an all-party government is established and the majority is secured in Parliament.

His office said that Wickremesinghe will continue as Prime Minister until then.

Wickremesinghe told Opposition party leaders that he was taking the decision to step down as the island-wide fuel distribution is due to recommence this week, the World Food Programme Director is due to visit the country this week and the debt sustainability report for the International Monetary Fund is due to be finalised shortly.

So as to ensure the safety of the citizens, Wickremesinghe, 73, said he is agreeable to this recommendation by the Opposition party leaders.

Meanwhile according to reports, Amid massive unrest in the country, protestors set ablaze the private residence of Sri Lankan PM Ranil Wickremesinghe.

#WATCH | Sri Lanka: Amid massive unrest in the country, protestors set ablaze the private residence of Sri Lankan PM Ranil Wickremesinghe#SriLankaCrisis pic.twitter.com/BDkyScWpui

— ANI (@ANI) July 9, 2022

Wickremesinghe was appointed the Prime Minister after anti-government protests forced the resignation of then prime minister Mahinda Rajapaksa, the elder brother of President Gotabaya Rajapaksa, in May.