INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
Sri Lankans elected Marxist-leaning Anura Kumara Dissanayake as new president on Sunday, putting faith in his pledge to fight corruption and
bolster a fragile economic recovery following the South Asian nation’s worst financial crisis in decades, Reuters reported.Dissanayake,
55, who does not possess political lineage like some of his rivals in the presidential election, led from start to finish during the
counting of votes, knocking out incumbent President Ranil Wickremesinghe and opposition leader Sajith Premadasa.“We believe that we can
turn this country around, we can build a stable government… and move forward
For me this is not a position, it is a responsibility,” Dissanayake told reporters after his victory which was confirmed after a second
tally of votes.The election was a referendum on Wickremesinghe, who led the heavily indebted nation’s fragile economic recovery from an
economic meltdown but the austerity measures that were key to this recovery angered voters
He finished third with 17% of the votes, read the report.“Mr
President, here I handover to you with much love, the dear child called Sri Lanka, whom we both love very dearly,” Wickremesinghe, 75,
said in a statement conceding defeat.Dissanayake polled 5.6 million or 42.3% of the votes, a massive boost to the 3% he managed in the last
presidential election in 2019
Premadasa was second at 32.8%.It was the first time in the Indian Ocean island’s history that the presidential race was decided by a
second tally of votes after the top two candidates failed to win the mandatory 50% of votes to be declared winner.Under the electoral
system, voters cast three preferential votes for their chosen candidates
If no candidate wins 50% in the first count, a second tally determines the winner between the top two candidates, using the preferential
votes cast, Reuters reported.About 75% of the 17 million eligible voters cast their ballots, according to the election commission.This was
the country’s first election since its economy buckled in 2022 under a severe foreign exchange shortage, leaving it unable to pay for
imports of essentials including fuel, medicine and cooking gas
Protests forced then-President Gotabaya Rajapaksa to flee and later resign.Dissanayake presented himself as the candidate of change for
those reeling under austerity measures linked to a $2.9 billion International Monetary Fund bailout, promising to dissolve parliament within
45 days of taking office for a fresh mandate for his policies in general elections.“The election result clearly shows the uprising that we
witnessed in 2022 is not over,” said Pradeep Peiris, a political scientist at the University of Colombo.“People have voted in line with
those aspirations to have different political practices and political institutions
AKD (as Dissanayake is popularly known) reflects these aspirations and people have rallied around him.”Dissanayake has worried investors
with a manifesto pledging to slash taxes, which could impact IMF fiscal targets, and a $25 billion debt rework
But during campaigning, he took a more conciliatory approach, saying all changes would be undertaken in consultation with the IMF and that
he was committed to ensuring repayment of debt, read the report.Buttressed by the IMF deal, Sri Lanka’s economy has managed a tentative
It is expected to grow this year for the first time in three years and inflation has moderated to 0.5% from a crisis peak of 70%.But the
continued high cost of living was a critical issue for many voters as millions remain mired in poverty and many pinned hopes of a better
future on the next leader.Dissanayake ran as a candidate for the National People’s Power alliance, which includes his Marxist-leaning
Janatha Vimukthi Peremuna party.Although JVP has just three seats in parliament, Dissanayake’s promises of tough anti-corruption measures
and more policies to support the poor boosted his popularity.He will have to ensure Sri Lanka sticks with the IMF programme until 2027 to
get its economy on a stable growth path, reassure markets, repay debt, attract investors and help a quarter of its people out of
poverty.“Root cause for the downfall of this country is bad management
We have a strong feeling if we have a good manager to rule this country… we can be successful in future,” said Janak Dias, 55, a real
estate businessmen.The post Sri Lankans elect Marxist-leaning Dissanayake as president to fix economy first appeared on Ariana News.
