Speaker officially announces Gotabaya Rajapaksa’s resignation as President

Speaker Mahinda Yapa Abeywardana officially announced yesterday (15) that Gotabaya Rajapaksa has resigned from the Presidency.

The Speaker stated that the resignation is effective as of July 14.

Addressing a media briefing yesterday, the Speaker said that the process of selecting a new President is expected to be completed within the next 07 days. The Speaker noted that until a new President is appointed, Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe will function as the acting President.

Speaker Abeywardana also said that Parliament will convene today (16) to officially announce the resignation of the President.

In his announcement the Speaker noted, “I have received the letter of resignation sent by His Excellency the President Gotabaya Rajapaksa in terms of Article 38.1 (b) of the Constitution of the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka. Accordingly, the President has officially resigned from his position on July 14th, 2022.

Accordingly, the constitutional process of electing a new president will be executed henceforth. The Prime Minister will act in accordance with the Constitution to exercise and perform the powers, functions and duties of the President until the completion of the said process.”

The Speaker noted that the election of the new President will be carried out in accordance with the Presidential Elections (Special Provisions) Act, No. 2 of 1981 in accordance with Article 40 of the Constitution. He said this had been notified to all the party leaders at the party leaders’ meeting held yesterday.

He further said, “It is my intention to successfully complete this process as soon as possible. As our nation, is known for its pride of being the oldest democratic country in South Asia, the execution of this process within a maximum democratic framework and transparency will be an important historical event not only in our country but also in the political history of the world.”

Accordingly, the Speaker requested all party leaders, Government officials and security personnel to extend their maximum support towards this process of democratic action.

He also appealed to the public to maintain peace and order in order to carry out the process of electing a president in a democratic manner.

“In particular, we request the respected and beloved public of our country to create a suitable and peaceful atmosphere for all the members representing Parliament to freely act according to their conscience and participate in the meetings in order to implement the proper democratic parliamentary system. I hope to complete this process within a short period of seven days with the cooperation of all the responsible parties in a peaceful atmosphere,” the Speaker added. Speaker Abeywardana confirmed that Parliament will convene today (16) and requesting the attendance of all members.