COLOMBO, May 11 (Xinhua) -- Sri Lanka's Central Bank Governor Nandalal Weerasinghe on Wednesday warned that the economic situation in the country will worsen if political stability is not achieved.
Speaking to journalists in the capital Colombo, Weerasinghe said he has conveyed to President Gotabaya Rajapaksa and other political leaders that he would step down from the post, if the current political crisis is not solved in the coming weeks.
The central bank chief further said that it was extremely challenging to revive an economy in a country where law and order was not maintained, and reiterated that political stability was paramount.
He said if the current situation continues in the next couple of days, things could get worse with prolonged power cuts, massive shortages of fuel and other essential items.
He also indicated that without a legitimate government with a prime minister, cabinet and finance minister, Sri Lanka would not be able to proceed with debt restructuring and negotiations with the International Monetary Fund to seek economic assistance.
He said usable foreign reserves were barely enough to finance one week of imports.
Mahinda Rajapaksa, serving as Sri Lankan president from 2005 and 2015 and sworn in as prime minister in 2019, resigned on Monday as violence erupted in the country.
Speaker of Parliament Mahinda Yapa Abeywardena on Tuesday asked the president to reconvene parliament, and to find a solution to the political instability in the South Asian country. ■