[19] His military background and role as defense secretary in ending the 26-year Sri Lankan Civil War in May 2009 contributed to his public image.

[20] He received significant public attention and support, as reported by, when he was nominated as the presidential candidate for the 2019 elections, after Sri Lanka was still reeling from the aftermath of the 2019 Easter Sunday bombings.

Reports suggest that Gotabaya consulted Vandana Shiva, an Indian scholar and anti-GMO activist, for the decision, although this has not been independently confirmed.

[25] The impact of a sudden chemical fertiliser ban was felt with the purchasing behavior of public[clarification needed] as Sri Lanka witnessed lengthy queues to buy important essential food items and other stuff including sugar, milk powder, kerosene oil and cooking gas.

[26][27] In September 2021, the government declared an economic emergency, as the situation was further aggravated by the falling national currency exchange rate, inflation rising as result of high food prices, and pandemic restrictions in tourism which further decreased the country's income.

[33][34] Reports of gas cylinder explosions in houses and hotels raised public safety concerns and criticism of government oversight as many people started to use electric cookers and ovens due to fear of using biogas.

It later deleted the tweet for unknown reasons, and it created doubts about the transparency of SriLankan Airlines and speculations arose about the transfer of "printed papers" cargo charter flights which departed to Uganda in February 2021.

[42][43] The Biyagama branch of the De La Rue company is responsible for printing currency notes to multiple countries, including Uganda.

[45] Several sources claimed that prime minister Mahinda Rajapaksa had maintained close ties with Uganda, especially during his second term as president from 2010 to 2015.

[54][55] Perera claimed that in 2016, he collected the funds for sports minister Namal Rajapaksa, and as a result, he was arrested and released on bail shortly later.

[57] Many young adults, including university students, took part in peaceful protests calling for a major overhaul of the system and urged lawmakers to pave way for youngsters to lead the country.

[76] On 6 April 2022, the opposition party SJB held placards and protested inside Parliament demanding that Gotabaya Rajapaksa resign immediately.

[78][79] On 7 April 2022, the private sector of Sri Lanka collectively in writing made a request to restore political stability in order to foster the economy.

[80] On 7 April 2022, the Chamber of Young Lankan Entrepreneurs (COYLE) had also made an appeal to the government to solve the current economic and political crisis and had warned that if the issue had not been addressed with due diligence it could lead to closure of businesses.

He also insisted that there are no other options except to seek assistance from multilateral agencies to cope up with the crisis and especially he called on the government to restructure the US$1 billion ISB bond repayment which matures around July 2022.

[82] On 8 April 2022, former World Bank official Shanta Devarajan had warned that the biggest risk Sri Lanka is going to face is the social unrest and turmoil.

He highlighted that cash transfer program can be initiated aiming at helping the poor people in addition to reduction in subsidies on food and fuel in order to avoid the collapse of the economy.

[83] Moody's Investors Service had warned that the wave of resignation of cabinet ministers would only heighten policy uncertainty and as a result it will make hard when obtaining or borrowing external finance.

[87] On 18 April 2022, Gotabaya appointed a new 17 member cabinet despite the protests calling the entire government to resign including the president alongside all 225 MPs in parliament.

[97] Some members of his party, including Harin Fernando expressed their disappointment and dissent over Sajith's demands and conditions at a time when the country is in critical juncture and crossroads.

[99][100] The SLFP leader and former president Maithripala Sirisena revealed to the media that a letter had been sent to Gotabaya by 11 political parties and independent parliamentary group nominating and proposing three names as candidates for PM post including Nimal Siripala de Silva, Dullas Alahapperuma and Wijeyadasa Rajapakshe.

On 9 July 2022, amid reports that their homes were stormed and burned, Gotabaya and Wickremesinghe both agreed to resign from their respective posts as Sri Lanka's president and Prime Minister.

[111] On 15 July, Ranil Wickremesinghe swore in as the acting president, taking his oath of office before Chief Justice Jayantha Jayasuriya.