Colombo, July 18 (FN Agency) The National Peace Council (NPC) has said a new President of Sri Lanka should be selected by consensus to tackle the country’s worst economic crisis. It was the duty and responsibility of the leaders of the political parties in Parliament to decide on a new President by consensus until such time as national elections were called and a new mandate was obtained directly from the people, The Island newspaper on Monday quoted the NGO as saying. Acting President Ranil Wickremesinghe, SJB leader Sajith Premadasa, SLPP representative Dullas Alahapperuma and JVP leader Anura Kumara Dissanayake are in the fray for the July 20 election.
“This election is not a routine process but is an outcome of an unprecedented public uprising, known as the Aragalaya, which forced the resignations of the President, the Prime Minister and Cabinet of Ministers and effectively nullified the electoral mandates obtained by them three years ago,” it said. “The NPC is deeply perturbed by the canvassing, lobbying and rhetoric that ignores the ground realities of a people’s uprising against the individuals and systems that have led to national ruin, economically, morally and socially. “We also note that the parliamentarians who are taking part in the election of the new President do so with a mandate that has been effectively nullified by the public uprising. “This applies in particular to the members of the ruling party and former government who have lost their moral legitimacy to govern the country which led to their resignations.
In this context we believe that it is the duty of the leaders of the political parties, in Parliament, to decide on the new President by consensus until such time as national elections are called and a new mandate is obtained directly from the people.” Such a President, it said, should be able to work with expertise in the country and institutions, locally and internationally, and, most of all, be acceptable to the people of the country. The July 20 election has been necessitated following the flight of President Gotabaya Rajapaksa from the country in the wake the serious economic meltdown. Prime Minster Ranil Wickremesinghe has since become the acting President.