Sri Lanka’s newly appointed ministers are to be sworn in at the ‘Temple of the Tooth’ in Kandy this week, in what looks set to be another overtly Sinhala Buddhist ceremony for Sri Lankan politicians.

A total of 28 Ministries and 40 State Ministries are set to be appointed, according to a gazette issued this morning. The Subject Ministers and State Ministers are scheduled to be sworn in at the Temple of Sacred Tooth Relic premises in Kandy on Wednesday before Gotabaya Rajapaksa, Sri Lanka’s war crimes accused president.

Rajapaksa visited the temple last week, where he spoke of the tooth relic as ”a symbol of status denoting the right to ascend the throne”. 

“A belief grew that whoever possessed the Sacred Tooth Relic had a divine right to rule that lands,” he added. Each of Sri Lanka’s leaders has repeatedly had to pay homage at the temple as they assumed office.

“The people of this country expect from us a country that deserves for the blessings of the Sacred Tooth Relic,” he added.

His speech came as part of a broader and more explicit Sinhala nationalist policy that the regime has been undertaking. “We appointed a Presidential Task Force to protect the relics in the Eastern province upon request by the Sanga,” Rajapaksa continued. “As the Theros rightly stated, 99% of our relics are of Buddhist heritage.”

Rajapaksa also revealed that he meets with the island’s powerful Buddhist clergy at the Presidential Secretariat every month where they “offer invaluable advice to guide Sri Lanka”.

“I have committed myself to follow these instructions in order to develop this country and preserve its unique heritage,” he added. “It is one of the duties of my government to continue the generations-long tradition to facilitate the role of the Bhikkus.”

“Therefore I am prepared to carry out duties I have been assigned by the Sacred Tooth Relic along with the other duties I have been entrusted with the government.” 

Last year, Rajapaksa vowed to lead the government based on “Buddhist philosophy” and paid tribute to his Sinhalese voters, as he took up the office of president in an overtly religious Buddhist ceremony in Anuradhapura. Dressed in all white and flanked by Buddhist monks, Rajapaksa had chosen to make the Ruwanmelisaya Buddhist stupa at Anuradhapura the site of his swearing in ceremony.  Sinhala legend claims the stupa was built by Dutugemunu, a Sinhala king that defeated the Tamil king Ellalalan in battle and ruled over the whole island under a single kingdom.