Economic Stability Over Abolishing Executive Presidency, says Ranil

COLOMBO (News 1st); Independent presidential candidate Ranil Wickremesinghe has stated that his primary focus, if elected on the 21st of September, will be on stabilizing the economy rather than abolishing the Executive Presidency. 

In response to a question about whether he would seek to abolish the Executive Presidency, Wickremesinghe emphasized that the decision should be left to the next Parliament. 

He highlighted that the country has spent the past 20-30 years debating the abolition of the Executive Presidency, often at the expense of addressing critical economic issues.

"Firstly, I'll leave it to the next Parliament to decide. But we have spent 20-30 years on abolishing the Executive Presidency and forgotten about the economy. So let me focus on the economy and let the Parliament decide whether it's there or not," he said.

Wickremesinghe argued that governance should take a backseat to economic recovery, urging the nation to concentrate on resolving economic challenges. He called for a shift in focus from political debates to economic solutions, warning of serious consequences if economic issues are not prioritized.

"In my view, I think governance is second. We have to get our economy straight and let's focus on that. Let the country decide what type of economy it wants. Let's spend the time we spent arguing on the Executive Presidency for and against, arguing on devolution for and against, just to focus on the economic and the economic issues. If you don't do it, you're going to be in serious trouble," he stated.