A major bureaucratic reshuffle in the offing?

- Is the President’s Secretary going to be replaced?

- Sri Lanka’s Ambassador post in Washington DC to fall vacant in July

- Inside sources say Dr. Nandika Kumanayake who is the President’s Secretary is being considered as the new ambassador to US

- President AKD’s Chief of Staff likely to be new Secretary to the President?

By JAMILA HUSAIN

Colombo, May 22 (Daily Mirror) - In a major shift within Sri Lanka’s diplomatic postings, the Daily Mirror learns that Sri Lanka’s current Ambassador to the United States Mahinda Samarasinghe will return back to the country in July after ending his term. It is learnt that Samarasinghe will likely be replaced by President Anura Kumara Dissanayake’s Secretary, Dr. Nandika Sanath Kumanayake as the new Ambassador to Washington DC.

However, while this is yet to be finalized by the Foreign Ministry or even the President’s office, the Daily Mirror learns that Dr. Nandika was informed to step down from his post as Secretary to the President after recent issues boiled up in Pelawatta - the JVP Headquarters - where senior JVPers wanted a more suitable candidate for the job.

Dr. Nandika who holds a very impressive educational qualification by holding a PhD in Development Economics and joined the public administration service in 1997 as an Assistant Superintendent of Sri Lanka Customs. He has been a close favorite of President Anura Kumara Dissanayake and was handpicked as the Secretary to the President by Dissanayake himself when he won the Presidency in 2024.

However, with recent splits erupting in the JVP camp and the turmoil erupting in Pelawatte, it is learnt that a certain faction had proposed to appoint Prabath Chandrakeerti as the new Secretary to the President since he remained an overall JVP supporter.

Prabath Chandrakeerthi presently functions as the Chief of Staff to President Dissanayake after he was promoted to the post in February and is a special grade officer in the Sri Lanka administrative service. He previously served as the Commissioner General of Essential Services.

Now if the appointments happen as mentioned above, then Dr. Nandika will leave for Washington as Sri Lanka’s Ambassador to the United States once Mahinda Samarasinghe ends his tenure and returns back to the island in July.

Dr. Nandika will be taking up the post at a critical time to deal with the Trump administration while negotiations continue with the United States over improvement of trade relations.

Mahinda Samarasinghe in the meantime is likely to play a key advisory role to the NPP government once he returns back to the country in July given his vast experience in the political field and the key foreign relations he has maintained.