Colombo: Sri Lanka President Gotabaya Rajapaksa on Thursday evening emailed his letter of resignation from the post Executive President, but the Speaker has deferred the official announcement till Friday. Rajapaksa has sent his resignation, but Speaker Mahinda Yapa Abeywardena was in confusion on its legality, whether such communication could be sent via email.
While Rajapaksa has assured the authenticity of the letter, the Speaker has sought legal advice from the Attorney General and has decided to make the official announcement only on Friday. Abeywardena also wants to verify the original signature and has directed to bring the original letter of Rajapaksa to Colombo from Singapore by a diplomatic officer in the next available flight.
Amid violent protest and takeover of President's house on July 9, Rajapaska had promised to resign on Wednesday, but he fled the country in the wee hours of the same day. He first went to the Maldives in a passenger flight of Sri Lanka Air Force and on Thursday went to Singapore from where he had made the announcement of resignation.
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Rajapaksa arrived in Singapore from the Maldives on Thursday after fleeing his country amidst the worst economic and political crisis faced by the island nation in decades. The Singapore government, according to reports, said that Rajapaksa was allowed to enter Singapore on a private visit though he had not asked for asylum. Rajapaksa, 73, who had promised to resign on Wednesday, appointed Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe as the acting President hours after he fled the country.
Saudi Airline flight SV 788 believed to be carrying President Rajapaksa landed at the Singapore Changi International Airport shortly after 7 pm (local time). The plane carrying Rajapaksa, his wife and two bodyguards landed at Singapore’s Changi Airport at 7.17 pm local time, according to the airport’s website. On Saturday, Rajapaksa had announced that he will step down on Wednesday after thousands of protesters stormed his official residence.
Rajapaksa, who enjoys immunity from prosecution while he is president, fled the country without resigning to avoid the possibility of arrest by the new government. Sri Lanka, a country of 22 million people, is under the grip of an unprecedented economic turmoil, the worst in seven decades, leaving millions struggling to buy food, medicine, fuel and other essentials. Prime Minister Wickremesinghe last week said Sri Lanka is now a bankrupt country. (With agency Inputs)
