As many as 35 Ministers of State and three deputy ministers were sworn-in in the presence of President Gotabaya Rajapaksa and Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa here on Wednesday.
It is important to note that Gotayaba has appointed his brother Chamal Rajapksa as the State Minister of Defence. Chamal also holds several important portfolios in the cabinet including agriculture, irrigation, internal trade, and consumer welfare.
The new set of ministers will function till the next parliamentary election scheduled for March 2020, reported Colombo Page.
The newly appointed deputy ministers are-- Indika Anuruddha, Deputy Minister of Public Management, Internal Affairs, Provincial Council and Local Government; Nimal Lanza as the Deputy Minister of Social Empowerment and Estate Infrastructure; and Kanchana Wijesekara as Deputy Minister of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources.
Last week, the 16-member interim cabinet was sworn in before the Rajapaksa.
Gotababya, who defeated his main opponent Sajith Premadasa to become president early this month, has picked his brothers--Mahinda and Chamal-- for the important posts in the government. These appointments are seen as an attempt to concentrate power into the hands of the Rajapaksa family.
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