President Anura Kumara Dissanayake thanked his immediate predecessor Ranil Wickremesinghe for having gone to live at his private residence without using an official one.
He revealed that the official residences given by the state to former presidents are presently being used by Mahinda Rajapaksa, Maithripala Sirisena and Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunga only.
Participating at a political talk show, the president said that former president Gotabaya Rajapaksa and Hema Premadasa, R. Premadasa’s widow, have also returned the official residences given to them.
Referring to Mahinda Rajapaksa’s official residence at Wijerama Mawatha in Colombo, the president said it is worth Rs. 3,500 million as per state estimate.
He said that the monthly rental for the 30,500 square feet facility on a one acre and 13 perch plot used by Mahinda Rajapaksa has been estimated at Rs. 4.6 million while Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunga’s official residence has an estimated rental worth of Rs. two million and it is for Rs. 900,000 for Sirisena’s residence.
Dissanayake added that he won’t need an official residence or security officers once he retires.
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