Colombo: Sri Lanka’s tough Rajapaksa brothers won a crushing victory in parliamentary elections, giving them a two-thirds majority of seats to make constitutional changes, according to the effects published Friday.
Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa will most likely be sworn in in the same post through his younger brother, President Gotabaya Rajapaksa, after the vote that could affect the dynastic regime in the Indian Ocean island nation.
“The Sri Lankan People’s Front has won a resounding victory according to the official effects posted so far,” Gotabaya Rajapaksa said in a Twitter message when the effects were posted. “It is out of the conviction that the expectation of having a Parliament that allows the implementation of my ” vision of prosperity policy “will be a truth tomorrow,” he said.
The Sri Lankan People’s Front of the Rajapaksas won 145 seats in the 225-member parliament, while its main opponent won only 54 seats, the effects of the electoral commission showed. A party representing the Tamil ethnic minority won 10 seats and 16 were divided into 12 smaller parties.
The brothers want 150 seats, or two-thirds of seats in Parliament, to replace the constitution. At least four small parties are taking part in Rajapaksas’ party, so they seem to have gotten that support.
Analysts say that any attempt through Gotabaya Rajapaksa to push for adjustments imposed by presidential force at the prime minister’s expense can cause a sibling rivalry.
Sri Lanka had been led by tough chief executives since 1978. But a 2015 constitutional amendment strengthened Parliament and the Prime Minister and placed independent commissions on the rate of judicial, police, public and electoral conduct.
Gotabaya was elected president last November after introducing himself as the only leader capable of securing the country after the bombing of Daesh-inspired churches and hotels on Easter Sunday that killed 269 people. Since his election, he has said he will have to operate under many restrictions due to constitutional changes.
However, Mahinda Rajapaksa is unlikely to give up any of his powers that may diminish his influence while working to announce his son Namal as his heir. Namal and 3 other members of Rajapaksa’s circle of relatives have defied the election and are likely to have key purposes in the new administration.
The crushing victory also raises fears of a weakening government, such as independent commissions for elections, police and civil service.
More than 70% of the country’s more than 16 million eligible voters voted in Wednesday’s elections, held under strict rules of fitness to prevent the spread of coronavirus.
The vote was postponed twice because of the pandemic. Sri Lanka has largely contained the spread of the virus with 2839 cases shown, adding up to 11 deaths.
The United States commended Sri Lanka for organizing the elections “in a peaceful and orderly manner despite the difficult situations posed by the COVID-19 pandemic.”
“As the new parliament meets, we expect the government to renew its commitments to build an inclusive economic recovery, respect for human rights and the rule of law, and the sovereignty of the country. We look forward to partnering with the government and the new parliament,” the U.S. embassy in Colombo said in a statement.
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