Sri Lanka opposition aims to install new government after protests force leaders to quit
Opposition leaders in Sri Lanka are meeting on Sunday in a bid to form a new government after the nation's President Gotabaya Rajapaksa and Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe agreed to step down.
This comes as protesters in Colombo stormed the residences of both leaders on Saturday amid the country's worst economic crisis in nearly 80 years.
Months of demonstrations have all but dismantled the Rajapaksa political dynasty, which has ruled Sri Lanka for most of the past two decades
Demonstrators are calling for an all-party government and are blaming the country's leaders for prompting the worst financial crisis the country has seen since Word War II.
The whereabouts of the President are still unknown after he fled his mansion on Saturday. Anti-government took to social media and posted videos showing hundreds of people storming the colonial-style compound.
Protesters remained in the building overnight and continue to occupy his home. Live streams of demonstrators exploring the Presidents private chambers and swimming in his swimming pool were broadcasted on Saturday from inside the grounds.
Demonstrators say they discovered a large sum of cash within Rajapaksa's home, a sum local media sources say has now been handed over to the authorities.
Parliamentary speaker Mahinda Yapa Abeywardena said in a televised statement late Saturday night that he informed Rajapaksa that parliamentary leaders had met and decided to request he leave office, and the president agreed. However, he added that Rajapaksa would remain temporarily to ensure a smooth transfer of power.
“He asked me to inform the country that he will make his resignation on Wednesday the 13th, because there is a need to hand over power peacefully,” Abeywardena said.
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