Cabinet Media Spokesperson Minister Bandula Gunawardena admitted that former President Gotabhaya Rajapaksa, who fled the country amid public protests, was given a private plane at the government’s expense to travel from Singapore to Bangkok, Thailand.
The minister emphatically said that Gotabhaya Rajapaksa has the right to receive such privileges.
The minister said this at the press conference to inform the cabinet decisions held this morning (16) when the journalists asked whether the former president had been given a plane with the tax money of the public.
The minister, who further commented, pointed out that according to the Presidential Election Act, there are privileges to be given by the government to a former president and even after the death of the president, there is a legal obligation to provide those privileges on behalf of the lady.
Minister Gunawardena stated that even now the former presidents are receiving such privileges and that the late Mr. Ranasinghe Premadasa’s wife will still be given the same privileges, and if further details are needed, they can be given in the future.