Thousands of protestors gathered in front of the Presidential Secretariat at Colombo’s landmark Galle Face Green on Saturday, demanding both President Gotabaya Rajapaksa and Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa resign as the government led by the ruling Rajapaksa clan failed to address the ongoing crisis.

Protestors holding placards, with the slogan ‘GotaGoHome’ written on them, gathered at Galle Face Green, a site half a kilometer from the heart of Colombo, frequented by locals and tourists alike. The country’s main opposition party, SJB, has warned the government that they would bring a no-confidence motion against them if they fail to address the crisis.

“We have decided to bring a no-confidence motion against Sri Lanka president Gotabaya Rajapaksa as he fails to address the country in connection with economic policies. We have called a meeting with all opposition leaders and will take a final decision on it soon," Sajith Premadasa, the leader of the SJB, was quoted as saying by ANI.

For weeks, the island country has been facing a shortage of food, fuel, and medicine as its foreign exchange reserves run low. Long queues for basic stuff like rice, fuel, and other essentials have become a common phenomenon across the country.

Faced with the worst ever economic crisis, the government now appears struggling to contain the public anger and protests—largely citizen-owned and peaceful—demanding the Rajapaksa family quit the government.

Industry leaders have warned the government of grave consequences if the social unrest and the crippling shortage continue, which could result in a complete collapse of the economy and mass employment. The country’s exports could decrease by around 20-30 percent, they warned.

The health sector, another crucial sector deeply affected by the crisis, has also warned that the country could see more deaths due to the shortage of medicine than those in the civil war and tsunami combined. 

(SAM)