Lankan leader to expand cabinet

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COLOMBO, Apr 24 (AFP): Sri Lanka's president will expand his new cabinet by five ministers but the government will still have far fewer members than the previous one, an official source said Saturday.
President Mahinda Rajapakse, whose ruling United People's Freedom Alliance took victory in this month's parliamentary election, will bring in five more cabinet ministers and one deputy minister soon, the official said.
His cabinet, sworn in Friday, currently numbers 37 excluding the president himself, who holds the defence, finance, ports and highways portfolios.
Rajapakse was re-elected for a second term in presidential polls in January and cemented his grip on power when his ruling coalition won 144 seats in the 225-member parliament two weeks ago.