Sri Lanka’s Opposition parties on Monday rejected President Gotabaya Rajapaksa’s invitation to join the proposed unity government as a “sham” after he fired his brother and finance minister Basil Rajapaksa from his post, as protests were held nationwide over the ruling Rajapaksa family’s poor handling of the country’s worst economic crisis.

President Gotabaya Rajapaksa on Monday fired Basil Rajapaksa from his post and invited the Opposition parties to join a unity cabinet to tackle the raging public anger against the hardships caused by the economic crisis.

On Sunday night, all 26 cabinet ministers submitted letters of resignation after thousands of people defied a countrywide state of emergency and curfew and joined street protests denouncing the government.

The largest Opposition political party, the United People’s Force or Samagi Jana Balavegaya, immediately rejected the President’s proposal of a unity government and termed this spate of resignations a “sham”.

Party leader Sajith Premadasa said he wished to see a political model that works. “We want resignations and then we want a political model that works.

A new Sri Lanka will begin with stronger institutions and not just a change in leadership. An interim government is nothing but internal party politics,” he tweeted.

Mano Ganesan, a Tamil leader from the Opposition said his party Tamil People’s Alliance and the main Muslim party Sri Lanka Muslim Congress also on the opposition will also not join the unity government.

President Gotabaya Rajapaksa named just four Cabinet members after the entire cabinet resigned last night. The resignations come after thousands of people defied a countrywide state of emergency and curfew and joined street protests denouncing the government.

Following the cabinet’s resignation Rajapaksa made an open invitation for all parties to join the unity Cabinet to tackle the current economic crisis.