Sri Lankan president rejigs cabinet after local poll defeat

Bloomberg

President Maithripala Sirisena reshuffled the cabinet in Sri Lanka for the second time since forming a unity government in 2015 after its two main coalition partners were defeated in local government elections.
Sirisena announced changes to six cabinet ministers, three state ministers and one deputy minister on Sunday, according to a statement from the president’s office. Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe added the portfolio of law and order to his responsibilities.
“The government needs to improve its policies, programs and actions to serve our people better.” Sirisena’s office quoted him as saying in a tweet.
A new opposition party backed by former Sri Lankan president Mahinda Rajapaksa won local government elections on February 10, defeating the parties of Sirisena and Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe, who together run the federal government. Amid moves by Sirisena to appoint a new prime minister, Wickremesinghe said on February 16 that he will restructure his party after its poll loss and would stay in his role as per the island’s constitution while discussing with Sirisena changes to the cabinet.
Sirisena ousted Rajapaksa at presidential polls in 2015 and the unity government he formed with Wickremesinghe won parliamentary elections in August that year.
With no significant changes announced, there will be no impact on the markets, said Adrian Perera, chief operating officer at EquiCapital Investments in Colombo.
“The government will have to take strong action to revive the economy and keep the cost of living down, otherwise the opposition will get activated again and the main parties will be
in trouble again in future elections,” Perera said.