Gotabaya Rajapaksa Speaks Out: “Time to Rally, Not Rock”
Why the nation’s in a scramble
Picture this: a country that’s running on empty, power cuts that could give a blackout playlist a run for its money, and folks on the street in suits that stay spotless thanks to the nice rain.
Key Moments
- President Gotabaya Rajapaksa called for a unity government on April 4 to tackle the crisis.
- Cabinet ministers and the Central Bank Governor, Ajith Nivard Cabraal, both offered to resign.
- Traffic lit up in Colombo, but protests continued peacefully—yes, you can still raise a voice in a world of traffic jams.
- The Colombo Stock Exchange briefly lit up with a green glimpse but then sprinted down to the dark side, causing the market to splash a third of its value off the table.
What’s the Deal with the Economy?
The island nation of 22 million eyes a foreign exchange crisis that’s choking import channels for fuel, food, and other essentials. When the currency took a bruising devaluation last month, inflation roared like a lion—no joke. The nation’s debt is as heavy as a giant’s boot, and the Bloomberg of the day? “The airport infrastructure is not going anywhere while the economy’s footing is shaky.”
Throwing in the Duck Tape (or Should We Call it a “State of Emergency”?)
- On a Friday, a “state of emergency” was declared after protests over the government’s mishandling of economic woes.
- The father of the current coalition is Sundar, a man with an interesting name; the younger brother in the Finance Ministry has been accused of paying too much attention to converting currency into cricket scores.
- In short, the President’s family is something of a chess board, and the combination of shifting pieces has made keeping the country stable hard enough.
Experts Weigh In
Paikiasothy Saravanamuttu, an executive director at the think‑tank Centre for Policy Alternatives, said:
“If a credible, no‑boot‑case interim government can step in, we’ll plant confidence in both people and the market.” But he also recognizes doubts: “People want the President gone—after all, he’s our target.”
Bottom Line?
Gotabaya Rajapaksa’s call for a team‑up might just swing the ending from “The Currency is on the Dead Sea level” to “We’ll get our own bomb on the toss.” The road ahead is uneven, but this quick call to gather all the political players (yes, even the stubborn ones!) is about time. A harvest of fresh solutions or a tangle of endless bills—only the next few weeks will tell. And for now, if you’re in the capital, keep an eye on traffic while you’re at the coffee shop—because the next chapter might involve a rebooting of the whole economic script.
