Sri Lanka crisis: Location unknown, yet President Gotabaya Rajapaksa issues orders
President Gotabaya Rajapaksa
From an unknown location, President Gotabaya Rajapaksa has ordered officials to ensure the smooth distribution of cooking gas after the fuel-starved country received 3,700 metric tonnes of LP gas, his office said on Sunday (July 10). This order comes after the country's parliamentary speaker said that Rajapaksa plans to step down on July 13. Although Rajapaksa has not commented directly.
In Sri Lanka, anti-government protesters are angry over power blackouts, shortages of basic goods and rising prices. They have also demanded that Rajapaksa should step down.
On Saturday, hundreds of protesters stormed the presidential palace and forced Rajapaksa to flee with the navy and announce he would resign.
ALSO READ |How Sri Lanka melted away: Anatomy of a massive protest
According to Sri Lankan media, President Rajapaksa has instructed the officers to carry out the unloading and distribution of gas as the first ship arrives at Kerawalapitiya this afternoon.
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The reports further mentioned that a second ship carrying 3,740 metric tonnes of gas is due on July 11 and a third carrying 3,200 metric tonnes of gas will arrive on July 15.
WATCH |Sri Lanka crisis: PM, President agree to step down; Gotabaya's current location kept secret
Protesters at the president's home
On Sunday, protesters refused to leave Rajapaksa's residence. The president was not present in the presidential house when a mob stormed the building.
Sri Lanka, a country of 22 million people, is under the grip of an unprecedented economic turmoil, the worst in seven decades.
The country, with an acute foreign currency crisis that resulted in foreign debt default, had announced in April that it is suspending nearly USD 7 billion foreign debt repayment due for this year out of about USD 25 billion due through 2026. Sri Lanka's total foreign debt stands at USD 51 billion.
(With inputs from agencies)
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