The Gulf Time Newspaper One of the finest business newspapers in the UAE brought to you by our professional writers and editors.
Bloomberg
Sri Lanka’s Former President Gotabaya Rajapaksa is set return to the island nation as early as Friday after he fled a surge in anti-government protests in July, according to people with knowledge of the matter.
Rajapaksa is expected to stay in a house provided by the government in Colombo, the people said, asking not to be named because the information isn’t public yet. Officials in current President Ranil Wickremesinghe’s office declined to comment. On Thursday, a local language newspaper Mawbima had also reported about Rajapaksa’s expected return on Friday.
The former strongman leader first fled to Singapore via the Maldives shortly after angry demonstrators stormed his official residence in the Sri Lankan capital, Colombo, on July 9. He formally resigned as president after arriving in Singapore on July 14. Last month, he arrived in Thailand using his diplomatic passport, the government of the Southeast Asian nation had confirmed.
Sri Lankan officials have said in the past, the ousted leader would eventually return to the country, where he would be given the security and perks due to a former president.
Veteran lawmaker Ranil Wickremesinghe, elected as the new president by the country’s parliament, is seen as a Rajapaksa ally. He won the election for the top job with the support of lawmakers from the former leader’s political party.
Rajapaksa has been the focus of protesters who blame him for the missteps that led to an economic meltdown with dwindling foreign exchange reserves.