Govt. took foreign loans worth Rs. 378.3 billion in 2015: GL

United People’s Freedom Alliance (UPFA) MP G.L. Peiris yesterday said the present government had obtained Rs. 378.3 billion as foreign loans for the first six months of this year because of the economic disaster that had engulfed it.

Addressing a news briefing at the Abhayaramaya in Colombo, the MP said only 259.8 billion rupees had been obtained as foreign loans by the previous regime for the whole of last year.“The Central Bank fraud, which had resulted in an estimated loss of upto Rs. 52 billion was one of the main reasons for the economic crisis. The government had not brought in even one Bill to support the mini-budget expenditure other than submitting votes of condolences in Parliament,” he said.

Meanwhile, Mr. Peiris said the people’s support for former President Mahinda Rajapaksa had intensified because they had already lost their faith in the new government.

MP Bandula Gunawardena said Mr. Rajapaksa would secure a landslide victory at a parliamentary election to be held this year. Commenting on obtaining nominations for Mr. Rajapaksa from the Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP), to contest as its Prime Ministerial candidate, MP T.B. Ekanayake said that they would submit a request in writing to President Maithripala Sirisena, the Chairman of SLFP, in this regard.

“The President appointed a committee of six MPs to coordinate between him and the former president.Arequest in this regard was carried by MP John Seneviratne, a member of the committee, for a meeting with the President in order to hand over the written request,” he said.