Governance is second, rebuilding economy first - President

•   No ultimatum given by ISB holders, talks will resume after elections  

By Kelum Bandara  

In the midst of talks about abolition of the executive presidency, President Ranil Wickremesinghe said he will leave it up to the next Parliament since rebuilding the economy precedes governance in his view.  

In response to a question raised during his Ask Me Anything session on Monday at a leading hotel in Colombo, the President said the country had talked about abolition of executive presidency for the last 20-30 years but had forgotten about the economy.  

“In my view, governance is second and economy comes first,” he said.  

He said he takes pride in witnessing a presidential election centered on the economy, steering away from issues of race, religion, or caste.   

 “As President, I am proud to oversee an election process where economic concerns transcend race, religion, or caste—all of our pockets have been impacted equally. This is a time for us to unite, address social disparities, and tackle issues like childcare and domestic violence. We’ve introduced women’s and children’s desks at every police station, but further measures are necessary election announcement, critical reforms, such as the economic transition bill, the electricity reform bill, and the public finance management bill—long discussed by many governments and in several IMF programmes—are yet to be completed,” he said.  

In response to another question, he asserted that ISB (International Sovereign Bond) holders have not set any mid- September ultimatum, President Ranil Wickremesinghe said discussions with them will resume only after the presidential election is over on September 21. He also said further details could not be divulged.  

Responding to a question on the current crisis involving passport issuance, he said the government takes the responsibility in this regard. He said the government decided to move out from conventional passports to e-passports.