Sri Lankan president reshuffles cabinet

COLOMBO – Sri Lankan President Maithripala Sirisena on Tuesday reshuffled his unity government following months of political unrest between the two main coalition partners, the Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP) led by Sirisena and the ruling United National Party (UNP) led by Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe. 

Some of the notable changes included UNP legislator, Wijedasa Rajapakse, who was the former Justice Minister but sacked by President Sirisena last August, to be sworn in as the new Minister of Higher Education and Cultural Affairs and Faizer Mustapha, to be sworn in as Minister of Sports. 

SLFP legislator, Duminda Dissanayake was sworn in as the new Minister of Disaster Management while retaining his portfolio of Minister of Irrigation and Water Resources. United National Front legislator Field Marshall Sarath Fonseka was sworn in as Minister of Sustainable Development, Wildlife and Regional Development. 

The reshuffle came after six cabinet ministers from the SLFP quitted from their posts last month, after they voted in favour of a non-confidence motion on Prime Minister Wickremesinghe at the Parliament. 
The new ministers were sworn at a simple ceremony at the Presidential Secretariat here on Tuesday. Enditem 
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