Dinesh Gunawardena has been sworn in as Sri Lanka’s new Prime Minister.
Gunawardena took oath before President Ranil Wickremesinghe at the Prime Minister’s Office this morning.
Several Members of Parliament were present at the occasion. Under the government of former President Gotabaya Rajapaksa, Premier Gunawardena worked in the capacity of the Minister of Public Administration, Home Affairs, Provincial Councils and Local Government.
Prime Minister Gunawardena also acted as the Leader of the House in Parliament.
The new Prime Minister was also part of several Parliamentary committees with the most recent being the Select Committee of Parliament to identify appropriate reforms of the election laws and the electoral system and to recommend necessary amendments.
He is currently the leader of the left-wing Mahajana Eksath Peramuna since 1983.
Prime Minister Gunawardena first entered Parliament through the Mahajana Eksath Peramuna contesting from the Maharagama Electoral District in 1983.
However, the party failed to secure any seats in Parliament at the 1994 Parliamentary Election.
In 2000, the Mahajana Eksath Peramuna joined the People’s Alliance where Premier Gunawardena contested the 2000 Parliamentary Election from the Colombo District and re-entered Parliament.
He has since been a public representative in Parliament consecutively to date.
Prime Minister Gunawardena has held several Ministerial posts during his time in Parliament, including Minister of Foreign Affairs, Transport, Education, and Urban Development.
