"President Rajapaksa would not have resigned if he were still in Sri Lanka" - Nasheed

The ousted President of Sri Lanka, Gotabaya Rajapaksa would not have resigned if he were still in Sri Lanka, stated the former President and Speaker of Parliament of Maldives, Mohamed Nasheed.

The Speaker of Maldivian Parliament made the statement in a tweet he posted after the Gotabaya Rajapaksa handed over his letter of resignation.

In his tweet, Nasheed stated that he believe the President would not have resigned if he were still in Sri Lanka, fearful of losing his life.

Additionally, he commended the thoughtful actions by the Maldivian Government for granting diplomatic clearance for a Sri Lanka Air Force aircraft carrying Gotabaya Rajapaksa and his spouse, on a transit visit, to land at the Velana International Airport on 13 July 2022. 

Nasheed in his tweet expressed hope that Sri Lanka can now move forward and extended his best wishes to the people of Sri Lanka.

According to media reports the Maldivian air traffic control refused the plane's request to land until an intervention by the Speaker of the Maldivian Parliament and former President Mohamed Nasheed. However, the Maldivian Parliament had said that they have no information regarding the arrival of the embattled President.

Rajapaksa was due to resign as president on Wednesday to make way for a unity government, after thousands of protesters stormed his and the prime minister's official residences on Saturday (July 9) demanding their resignation.

However, his letter of resignation was sent to the Speaker of Parliament of Sri Lanka, on Thursday night, after he arrived in Singapore.

The Sri Lankan Parliament will elect his replacement on July 20.

The Rajapaksa family, including former prime minister Mahinda Rajapaksa, has dominated the politics of the country of 22 million for years and most Sri Lankans blame them for the current problems. Many in Sri lanka accuse the family of widespread embezzlement and fraud, in addition to mismanagement.