COLOMBO, Sri Lanka (AP) — Sri Lankan lawmakers elected an unpopular prime minister as their new president Wednesday, a choice that risks reigniting turmoil in the South Asian nation reeling from an economic collapse.
The crisis has already forced one Sri Lankan leader out of office, and several hundred protesters quickly gathered after the vote to express outrage that Ranil Wickremesinghe – a six-time prime minister they see as part of a troubled political elite – will remain in power.
Sri Lankans have taken to the streets for months to demand their top leaders step down as the country has descended into economic chaos that has left its 22 million people struggling with shortages of essentials including medicine, fuel and food. After demonstrators stormed the presidential palace and several other government buildings last week, President Gotabaya Rajapaksa fled and then resigned.
Much of the protesters’ anger is focused on Rajapaksa and his family’s political dynasty, which has ruled Sri Lanka for most of the past two decades. But many also accuse Wickremesinghe of protecting Rajapaksa, and during demonstrations last week mobs set fire to his private residence and occupied his office.
Wednesday’s vote means Wickremesinghe – who was also Rajapaksa’s finance minister and became acting president after the leader fled – will complete a presidential term that ends in 2024. He can now also appoint a new prime minister.
“I don’t need to tell you the state our country is in,” Wickremesinghe, 73, told fellow lawmakers after his victory was announced. “People don’t expect old politics from us, they expect us to work together.”
He urged the country to move forward: “Now that the elections are over, we must end this division.”
But instead, protesters flocked to the presidential residence, chanting “Ranil, go home”.
“We are very sad, very disappointed with the 225 members of parliament that we chose to speak on our behalf, which they did not,” said Visaka Jayawer, a performer in the crowd. “We will continue to fight for the people of Sri Lanka. We must demand a general election.”
Wickremesinghe has extensive experience in diplomacy and international affairs – he noted on Wednesday that he had spent 45 years of his life in parliament – and led the bailout negotiations for the bankrupt country with the International Monetary Fund.
But many voters view him with suspicion since he was appointed prime minister by Rajapaksa in May, hoping he would restore stability.
Protesters accuse Rajapaksa and his powerful family of draining money from state coffers and hastening the country’s collapse by mismanaging the economy. The family has denied allegations of corruption, but the former president has admitted that some of his policies contributed to Sri Lanka’s downfall.
“The struggle will continue until our demands are met.” (Wickremesinghe) has no mandate to run the country,” said Nemel Jayaweera, a human resources specialist. “We will oppose him.”
Still, the ruling party’s majority in parliament won over Wickremesinghe in Wednesday’s vote by 134 votes. Populist Dallas Alahaperuma, a longtime Rajapaksa ally and also a minister in his government, won 82, while the Marxist candidate won three.
The vote, broadcast on national television, was a dignified, solemn event. While the vote was secret until the results were announced, MPs pounded the tables in support of their candidates.
After the vote, some supporters celebrated Wickremesinghe’s victory in the streets. He will be sworn in on Thursday.
Only a handful of MPs had publicly said they would vote for Wickremesinghe given widespread hostility to him – but dozens loyal to Rajapaksa were expected to back him as he assured them he would severely punish protesters who burned politicians’ homes during of riots.
On Monday, in his role as acting president, Wickremesinghe declared a state of emergency, giving him broad powers to act in the interest of public safety and order. Authorities can search and detain people, and Wickremesinghe can also change or suspend any law.
The political turmoil in Sri Lanka only worsened the economic disaster. But Wickremesinghe said on Monday that talks with the IMF were coming to an end, while talks on aid from other countries had also advanced. He also said that the government has taken steps to resolve the shortage of fuel and cooking gas.
Hours before Wednesday’s vote, IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva told the Nikkei Asia financial magazine that the organization hoped to complete bailout talks “as quickly as possible.”
As prime minister, Wickremesinghe delivered weekly addresses to parliament in which he warned that the exit from the crisis would be difficult, while promising to overhaul a government that increasingly concentrated power under the presidency.
Presidents in Sri Lanka are usually elected by the public. The responsibility falls on the parliament only if the presidency becomes vacant before the official end of the mandate.
This had only happened once before in Sri Lanka, when then-Prime Minister Dingiri Banda Vietunga was elected to parliament unopposed in 1993 after former President Ranasinghe Premadasa, father of the current opposition leader, was assassinated.
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Associated Press writer Bharatha Mallawarachi contributed to this report.
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