The 7th Executive President of Sri Lanka Gotabaya Rajpaksha was sworn in Monday in a grand ceremony held at Ruwanwelisaya Stupa in Sri Lanka, and sought the blessings of religious leaders after he took the oath.  

Rajpaksha addressed the nation after taking the oath and said that the Sinhala people elected him and he was disappointed that he did not get the support of the Tamils and the Muslims.  

Living up to his strongman image he said to cheered people "corruption will never be tolerated under my administration."

Rajpaksha's jubilant supporters came out on the roads of the island nation to celebrate the victory. They carried the flags of the nation and the party, distributed sweets and burst firecrackers. 

It was a close and fierce fight but a comfortable victory for the former defense secretary, who is credited with ending the civil war against the Tamil rebels in 2009. Rajapaksha received more than 52 percent of the votes, leaving his rival Sajith Premdasa with about 41 percent.  

"We want to live freely in our country. This is the only expectation we have from our new president," a voter named Yamuna Priyadarshin said, "We feel he can do it as he ended the civil war that's why we voted for him. We trust him as he is not a politician but a government servant." 

Rajapaksha's campaign was centered around national security and as soon as he was sworn in, he assured the people that the main responsibility of his government is state security.  

He said that they will work on rebuilding security mechanisms. Thilanga de Silva, another supporter of his, told CGTN, "We want peace and harmony in the country. I am representing young generation and I voted for him because he is a technical person and a digitalized person."

The expectations of the people from their new president are high. He has many challenges the first and foremost being the struggling economy. He will have to bring it on track and once again attract investment.  

He has inherited a struggling economy which is at its slowest growth rate for 18 years.  

The country saw bomb attacks on churches in hotels this April, which have impacted the economy badly, including the tourism industry, which is one of the main stake of the island nation.  

It is yet to recover from the impact of the attacks. The other would be to get investment because, after the attacks, the investors have not come forward.  

Rajapaksha also planned to rebuild the security arms of the state, including its intelligence cells and surveillance networks that he said the outgoing administration dismantled under international pressure.  

So from the looks of it, it's not going to be an easy task, especially because expectations are so high. 

(Cover: Gotabaya Rajapaksa waves at his supporters as he leaves after his swearing in ceremony as Sri Lanka's President in Anuradhapura, Sri Lanka, November 18, 2019. /Reuters Photo)