ECONOMYNEXT – Sri Lanka President Gotabaya Rajapaksa had fled to the Maldives in a military aircraft, reports said as his resignation is expected later in the day amid the worst currency crisis in the history of the island’s intermediate regime central bank.
Sri Lanka Air Force said an aircraft was given to President Rajapaksa, his wife and two body guards to leave the country following a request of the prevailing government in the early hours of July 13 to leave for the Maldives.
It was done “with the full approval of the ministry of defence, under the immigration, customs and all other laws at the Katunayake International Airport,” the statement said.
Social media posts from the Maldives showed a motorcade of vehicles being escorted with sirens blaring.
Sri Lanka President Rajapaksa is expected to give his resignation today, according to an earlier statement by the Speaker of Sri Lanka’s parliament.
If President resigns and Prime Minister Wickremesinghe does not resign, he will become President for a time.
Sri Lanka protestors and other opposition groups have warned that the move will be opposed.
However the Rajapaksa group in parliament showed that it had a majority by changing the law of the Ceylon Electricity Board law to end competitive bidding for procuring power, political analysts say.
President Rajapaksa was forced to resign following the worst currency crises triggered by the island’s intermediate regime central bank.
The central bank has busted the currency from 4.70 to 380 to the US dollar since the Latin America style agency was created by a US money doctor in 1950. (Colombo/July13/2022)