39 to challenge Wickremesinghe in presidential elections
Nominations have been finalized for the Sept. 21 vote, the first since the revolt two years ago that led to the ouster of Gotabaya Rajapaksa swept away by the economic crisis. The economist who will lead the country from 2022 presents himself as an “independent.” Opposition leaders are against him, while the old dynasty is running the former president's grandson. Transparency opens website to collect complaints about abuse of public resources in election campaign.
Colombo (AsiaNews) - As many as 39 nominations have been accepted by the Colombo Election Commission for the long-awaited presidential election to be held Sept. 21 in Sri Lanka, the first since the demonstrations in the summer of 2022 that led to the exit of Gotabaya Rajapaksa, the president-elect in 2019 who was swept away by the economic crisis that brought the country to its knees.
This is a record number of candidates for an appointment that is seen as a kind of referendum on the figure of Ranil Wickremesinghe, the economist who took over from Rajapaksa two years ago in the midst of the crisis thanks to a parliamentary vote.
Of the 39 presidential candidates, 22 are expressions of recognized political parties, while 17 are presenting themselves as independents. Wickremesinghe himself is presenting himself as an independent, although he has already cashed in the support of some parliamentarians and former ministers from different parties.
Announcing his candidacy, on his Twitter profile, the outgoing president wrote that Sri Lanka is on the road: since 2022, “we have worked hard together to recover from the challenges of the past, but there is still much to be done. My commitment to you and to our country,” he added, ”is unwavering. Together, we will continue to build a prosperous future, but this can only be done with stability.”
Wickremesinghe's main rivals include Sajith Premadasa, leader of the Samagi Jana Balawegaya, which was the largest opposition force in the current parliament, and Anura Dissanayake, of the National People's Power, a left-wing political party that has gained popularity among people who blame the mainstream parties for widespread corruption and economic debacle. Both Premadasa and Dissanayake had already run for office in the 2019 presidential election and emerged defeated.
Prominent among the names of other candidates then is that of Namal Rajapaksa, the son of former President Mahinda Rajapaksa and grandson of ousted President Gotabaya Rajapaksa. His candidacy will indicate how much support the disgraced former powerful dynasty still retains in the country due to the economic crisis.
Meanwhile, Transparency International Sri Lanka has initiated election monitoring activities to monitor and prevent the misuse of state resources during the election period to elect Sri Lanka's next president on Sept. 21.
“For any kind of misuse of public property in the country for elections, an opportunity has been offered to file complaints through the recently introduced “Ape Salli” website (www.apesalli.lk), or toll-free number 076 322 344 2,” Transparency International Sri Lanka's national coordinator, lawyer Thushani Kandilpana, said at a press conference.
About 200 observers from the organization have been deployed across the country and have already sent some complaints to the Election Commission.
“Since public resources are often used for the promotion of a party or candidate, we ask the citizens of this country to be very careful and report if this is done for the promotion of a candidate during this election period. Let every citizen act as an election observer,” lawyer Thushani added.
For the first time ever in Sri Lanka, six organizations-Transparency International Sri Lanka (TISL), People's Action for Free and Fair Elections (PAFFREL), Campaign for Free and Fair Elections (CaFFE), Centre for Monitoring Election Violence (CMEV), Hashtag Generation, and Institute for Democratic Reforms and Electoral Studies (IRES)-have created an online observation tool to observe campaign expenditures by candidates in the 2024 presidential election.
The tool is designed to contribute to the long-term goals of promoting transparency and accountability in Sri Lanka's electoral processes. By increasing public awareness of the role of money in electoral campaigns and its influence on voter decisions, it encourages citizen engagement in campaign finance observation through the dedicated website chandasallimeetare.lk
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24/01/2007
