COLOMBO: Sri Lanka's former strongman chief Mahinda Rajapakse on Sunday vowed snap elections would go forward to "seek a mandate from the people" after the president's sacking of parliament plunged the country deeper into political turmoil.
President Maithripala Sirisena caused the disaster two weeks ago by way of sacking top minister Ranil Wickremesinghe and replacing him with Rajapakse in a power swap his opponents say is prohibited.
Sirisena dismissed parliament on Friday and called new polls for January 5, throwing the island into fresh chaos because the United States urged Sri Lanka to admire democratic processes.
Wickremesinghe's party had sought after parliament reconvened to prove he commanded a majority, but Sirisena refused and sacked the legislature as a substitute, escalating a standoff between the rival factions.
Rajapakse, a former president who led Sri Lanka with an iron fist for a decade, stated "no one" may just prevent the polls going forward.
"The election will go ahead and I am confident we will sweep the election," he informed reporters Sunday in his first remarks since the polls were called.
"The international community must realise that this is democracy. They must understand our position. We are seeking a mandate from the people."
Rajapakse stated he was once assembly with attorneys forward of a slew of legal challenges in the Supreme Court to his appointment and the polls.
His rival Wickremesinghe insists he nonetheless heads the government and has refused to vacate the top minister's official residence in Colombo.
Sirisena dissolved parliament not up to every week sooner than the legislature was once anticipated to vote on both Rajapakse and Wickremesinghe.
Sirisena's party had acknowledged that it didn't have a majority in the 225-member meeting, despite arranging eight defections from Wickremesinghe's party.
Only China has recognised Rajapakse's appointment as top minister.
The United States has led a chorus of international voices expressing worry over threats to democracy in the island of 21 million people strategically positioned in the Indian Ocean.
Election monitors have puzzled the legality of the election, which comes just about two years forward of agenda.
The People's Action for Free and Fair Elections, one in every of two formally sanctioned election tracking groups, stated it believed Sirisena's actions were unconstitutional.
"As an election monitoring group we can't oppose a poll, but there are serious questions about the validity of the president's action in calling this election," its leader Rohana Hettiarachchi informed AFP.
He stated he had already asked the independent Elections Commission to seek an opinion from the lawyer normal and an order from the Supreme Court.
President Maithripala Sirisena caused the disaster two weeks ago by way of sacking top minister Ranil Wickremesinghe and replacing him with Rajapakse in a power swap his opponents say is prohibited.
Sirisena dismissed parliament on Friday and called new polls for January 5, throwing the island into fresh chaos because the United States urged Sri Lanka to admire democratic processes.
Wickremesinghe's party had sought after parliament reconvened to prove he commanded a majority, but Sirisena refused and sacked the legislature as a substitute, escalating a standoff between the rival factions.
Rajapakse, a former president who led Sri Lanka with an iron fist for a decade, stated "no one" may just prevent the polls going forward.
"The election will go ahead and I am confident we will sweep the election," he informed reporters Sunday in his first remarks since the polls were called.
"The international community must realise that this is democracy. They must understand our position. We are seeking a mandate from the people."
Rajapakse stated he was once assembly with attorneys forward of a slew of legal challenges in the Supreme Court to his appointment and the polls.
His rival Wickremesinghe insists he nonetheless heads the government and has refused to vacate the top minister's official residence in Colombo.
Sirisena dissolved parliament not up to every week sooner than the legislature was once anticipated to vote on both Rajapakse and Wickremesinghe.
Sirisena's party had acknowledged that it didn't have a majority in the 225-member meeting, despite arranging eight defections from Wickremesinghe's party.
Only China has recognised Rajapakse's appointment as top minister.
The United States has led a chorus of international voices expressing worry over threats to democracy in the island of 21 million people strategically positioned in the Indian Ocean.
Election monitors have puzzled the legality of the election, which comes just about two years forward of agenda.
The People's Action for Free and Fair Elections, one in every of two formally sanctioned election tracking groups, stated it believed Sirisena's actions were unconstitutional.
"As an election monitoring group we can't oppose a poll, but there are serious questions about the validity of the president's action in calling this election," its leader Rohana Hettiarachchi informed AFP.
He stated he had already asked the independent Elections Commission to seek an opinion from the lawyer normal and an order from the Supreme Court.
Sri Lanka's Mahinda Rajapakse vows to hold polls despite challenge
![Sri Lanka's Mahinda Rajapakse vows to hold polls despite challenge]()
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on
November 11, 2018
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