Ranil Wickremesinghe, the prime minister of Sri Lanka, took the oath of office before the chief justice on Friday.
Following the resignation of President Gotabaya Rajapaksa, Wickremesinghe was sworn in.
Mahinda Yapa Abeywardena, the speaker of Sri Lanka’s parliament, had earlier said that President Rajapaksa had resigned formally and that Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe will take office as an interim leader.
Abeywardena stated during a news conference that he had received the president’s letter of resignation and that the president has now formally resigned from his legal obligations.
“Under these circumstances, the constitutional procedure of appointing a new president will now be activated.
“Until this constitutional procedure is over, according to the constitution the prime minister will function in the capacity of the president overseeing functions, duties, and powers of the office of the president,” the speaker said.
The speaker also announced that parliament would meet on July 16 and asked all lawmakers to show up for those meetings.
All party leaders, state officials, and security personnel were asked to lend their full support to the democratic process of choosing a new president and administration.
He specifically urged Sri Lankans to foster an atmosphere of peace that would permit all parliamentarians to freely attend parliament.
The speaker declared that he aimed to finish the presidential election process in only seven days.
For months, Sri Lanka had been experiencing significant economic turbulence, which had caused a shortage of essential supplies including food, gas, and petrol.
