The SLFP and Wickremesinghe’s UNP are in a national unity government since 2015. The minority Tamil and Muslim parties voted in favour of the premier. Significantly some of the senior loyalists of Sirisena were absent at the vote.
Sirisena who was elected President in 2015 with support mainly from Wickremesinghe had called for premier’s stepping down mid last month after both political parties in the unity government lost badly to Rajapaksa’s new party. The SLFP had insisted that Wickremesinghe should step down before the motion.
The motion charged Wickremesinghe of protecting his nominee as the Governor of Central Bank over his role in alleged Bond scam, bungling in economic policy management and failing to tackle an anti-Muslim minority riot last month.
