Former Secretary to the Ministry of Finance Mahinda Siriwardena, who joined the Derana 360 program, emphasized that the difficult and decisive steps taken by former President Ranil Wickremesinghe were the reason for Sri Lanka to recover from the worst economic crisis it had ever faced.
He pointed out that President Wickremesinghe, without thinking about his political future, worked tirelessly to take the necessary difficult decisions for the country during a time when the economy was in a difficult situation. “This success could have been lost if those decisions had not been taken,” he stated.
He also recalled that during the negotiations on the debt restructuring process, he had to contact President Wickremesinghe on the phone on many occasions to seek advice. He also noted that he had learned a lot during his time working with him, including how to deal with countries.
Mahinda Siriwardena, who expressed his gratitude to former President Gotabaya Rajapaksa for trusting him and appointing him as the Secretary to the Ministry of Finance, said that he was the one who took many decisions in the economic management process initiated by President Ranil Wickremesinghe.
He further stated that it was a major reason for the current success, and that he had also learned a lot from that experience.
In addition, he stated that the decision taken by President Anura Kumara Dissanayake to continue the economic program that has been implemented so far was an “excellent decision.”
Recalling the situation that arose due to the change in the program in 2019, he said that it was a historic decision for President Dissanayake, as a leader, to understand it and continue to implement the program that had been implemented.
Former Secretary Mahinda Siriwardena further recalled that at that time, the international community, including international credit rating agencies and various countries, paid close attention to Sri Lanka.
However, Mahinda Siriwardena was heavily criticized on social media for not mentioning former President Ranil Wickremesinghe in his speech at the ceremony held on the day of his retirement.