Govt says former President not using state funds on expenses abroad

Former President Gotabaya Rajapaksa is spending for his current foreign travels through his personal funds and not through state funds, the Government Information Department said today.

Issuing a statement, it said former President Gotabaya Rajapaksa does not spend government money on any expenses he makes abroad and that all such expenses shall be borne by the personal funds of the former President.

At the press conference held today (16) at the Government Information Department’s auditorium to announce the weekly cabinet decisions, media persons had raised a question about the foreign expenses of the former President, who is currently in Thailand after brief stays in Maldives and Singapore. 

Minister Bandula Gunawardena’s response that former and current presidents are legally entitled to certain privileges, had been reported by some media in a manner that insinuates that state funds were being spent for the foreign expenses of the former president, the communiqué said.

Former President Gotabaya Rajapaksa informed that the reports published by some media about his overseas expenses are incorrect and emphasized that his personal funds are spent for all the expenses.