Sri Lanka's President Gotabaya Rajapaksa and the entire cabinet will resign to make way for a unity government, the prime minister's office said, after tens of thousands of protesters stormed the official residences of both men
President Gotabaya Rajapaksa, who had overseen a ruthless crushing of the Tamil Tigers insurgents as defence secretary, is set to resign on Wednesday. His brothers and nephew earlier quit as ministers as Sri Lanka began running out of fuel, food and other essentials in the worst crisis since independence from Britain in 1948.
Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe, whose private home was set alight by protesters, has said he will step down. His office said Rajapaksa had confirmed his resignation plans to the prime minister, adding that the cabinet would resign once a deal was reached to form an all-party government. "We are not going anywhere till this president leaves and we have a government that is acceptable to the people," said Jude Hansana, 31, who has been at a protest site outside the residence since early April.
U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres called for a smooth transition of government and "sustainable solutions" to the economic crisis.Opposition leader Sajith Premadasa, whose Samagi Jana Balawegaya party holds 54 seats in the 225-member parliament, said it was ready to step into the government. Wickremesinghe's private home in an affluent Colombo suburb was set on fire on Saturday, and three suspects have been arrested.
Government finances were crippled by mounting debt and lavish tax breaks given by the Rajapaksa regime. Foreign exchange reserves were quickly depleted as oil prices rose.
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