Sri Lankan president seeks party win in parliamentary election to help him push his economic reforms

COLOMBO, Sri Lanka (AP) — Sri Lankan President Anura Kumara Dissanayake is looking to consolidate his party's power in Thursday's parliamentary election to help him implement his election pledges to solve the country's economic woes and foster good governance.

The Marxist-leaning Dissanayake won the presidential election on Sept. 21 in a victory that marked a rejection of the traditional political parties that have governed the island nation since its independence from British rule in 1948.

However, Dissanayake's failure to secure more than 50% of the vote has fueled concerns over his party’s outlook in the parliamentary election. His National People's Power party must increase its votes significantly — from the 42% it won in the presidential election — if it is to secure a minimum of 113 seats to take control of the 225-member Parliament.

Dissanayake, while campaigning for his party's candidates, has called on voters to help elect them to Parliament so he won't need to rely on a coalition to enact the reforms he promised.

“A strong government should be formed to rebuild the country. A government that is unshakable in the Parliament should be established. And to do that, Parliament should be filled with elected members from our party," Dissanayake said to cheers at a rally on the final day of campaigning on Monday.

The election comes at a decisive time for Sri Lankans, as the island nation emerges from its worst economic crisis, having declared bankruptcy after defaulting on its external debt in 2022.

The country is now in the middle of a bailout program with the International Monetary Fund and debt restructuring with international creditors nearly complete.

Dissanayake had said during the presidential campaign that he planned to propose significant changes to the targets set in the IMF deal, which his predecessor Ranil Wickremesinghe signed, saying it placed too much burden on the people. However, he has since changed his stance and says Sri Lanka will go along with the agreement and not seek to change it.

He told his supporters on Monday that an IMF team would arrive in Sri Lanka two days after the election to complete a third review of the agreement.

“By the end of January or the beginning of February, we will complete that task. By then, we will be able to secure considerable stability in the economy,“ he said.

He said the government will present its first budget in February next year.

The government expects the budget to include proposals to reduce taxes and increase salaries for government servants.

Political analyst Jehan Perera said Dissanayake “has been careful and played it safe by continuing with most of the policies set by his predecessor. He has been sensitive to the concerns of the business community that any deviation from the IMF agreement could cause the economy to unravel.”

“The president has been careful not to rock the boat or sink it, as the opposition warned,” he added.

Sri Lanka’s crisis was largely the result of economic mismanagement combined with fallout from the pandemic, which along with 2019 terrorism attacks devastated its important tourism industry. The coronavirus crisis also disrupted the flow of remittances from Sri Lankans working abroad.

The government also slashed taxes in 2019, depleting the treasury just as the virus hit. Foreign exchange reserves plummeted, leaving Sri Lanka unable to pay for imports or defend its currency, the rupee.

Sri Lanka’s economic upheaval led to a political crisis that forced then-President Gotabaya Rajapaksa to resign in 2022. Parliament then elected Wickremesinghe to replace him.

The economy was stabilized, inflation dropped, the local currency strengthened and foreign reserves increased under Wickremesinghe. Nonetheless, he lost the election as public dissatisfaction grew over the government’s effort to increase revenue by raising electricity bills and imposing heavy new income taxes on professionals and businesses, as part of the government’s efforts to meet the IMF conditions.

Dissanayake’s National Peoples' Power party has gained popularity since his election victory, while the opposition parties are divided.

“Those who have been reassured by the smooth transfer of power and the NPP’s restraint in its first two months in power are likely to vote in his favor. This number is likely to see an increase over the number who voted in his favor at the presidential election,” said Perera, the political analyst.

Ruwan Sanjeewa, 36, who works as a laborer, joined one of the final rallies held by Dissanayake's party in the town of Gampaha, 34 kilometers (21 miles) north of Colombo and said he would vote for the NPP.

“See the plight of the country today. Traditional political parties who ruled this country over the last few decades have failed to deliver what they promised. We are now in a very pathetic situation. So, I want to give a chance to NPP. Let's see what they will do. I am hopeful the NPP might do something good for this country,” he said.