Prime Minister Highlights Foreign Visit Expenditures by Former Presidents and Current Leaders

In a recent debate on the expenditure head of the President, Prime Minister Harini Amarasuriya brought attention to the controversial spending on foreign visits by former and current leaders of Sri Lanka. According to the Prime Minister, former President Mahinda Rajapaksa had allocated a staggering Rs. 3,572 million of public funds for foreign visits during his tenure from 2010 to 2014. The highest expenditure, amounting to Rs. 1,144 million, occurred in 2013.

In contrast, Prime Minister Amarasuriya highlighted the significantly lower costs associated with current President Anura Kumara Dissanayake's foreign visits, amounting to just Rs. 1.8 million for his three trips so far.

Former President Maithripala Sirisena's foreign visits between 2015 and 2019 totaled Rs. 384 million, while former President Gotabaya Rajapaksa spent Rs. 126 million during his two years in office. Notably, former President Ranil Wickremesinghe’s foreign trip expenses from 2023 to 2024 were reported at Rs. 533 million, with 33 trips and a total of 154 accompanying persons.

Amarasuriya further criticized the lavish entourage accompanying Wickremesinghe on his visits, including trips to the UK for Queen Elizabeth II's funeral, Japan for former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's funeral, and the UK for the coronation of King Charles III, where large groups of individuals were part of the official delegations. On one occasion, Wickremesinghe took 23 individuals to India on an official visit.

In contrast, Dissanayake only took five individuals with him on his visit to India, further emphasizing the disparity in foreign visit expenses between current and former leaders.