President acting under influence of Basil R, sacked ministers allege

Finance Minister Basil Rajapaksa came in for strong criticism from dissidents within the ruling party who accused him of deliberately running the country’s economy to the ground so as to allow American intervention. Sacked ministers Wimal Weerawansa, Udaya Gammanpila and Minister Vasudeva Nanayakkara joined ranks to berate Rajapaksa for running the Sri Lanka Podujana peramuna (SLPP) as his private property and using that to influence the President’s decision making.