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Namal tells of their plans to Indian news site

It is the right time to have a stable government and invite Indian investors to take a lead role in the economic development of Sri Lanka, MP Namal Rajapaksa said yesterday in an interview with India News 18.
He also said that Sri Lanka needed a lot of support from friendly countries and that India had been the biggest supporter during the last couple of months and also historically.
“We believe that a lot of investments from all over the world that we had lined up during PM Mahinda Rajapaksa’s time are towards finalisation, and going into MoUs for construction, especially from India and few other countries. We need to expedite those projects, find a new PM and government to bring in these investments. I’m sure a lot of Indian investors have come forward to invest in Sri Lanka. Credit lines and grants and loans are all good but for the long-term, we need investments. It is the right time to have a stable government and invite Indian investors to take a lead role in that.”
It’s easy to carry out a revolution, it’s easy to carry out a protest or disruption, but rebuilding, development, forward thinking, and governing are the toughest things to do, he added.
Commenting on recent political developments, Rajapaksa said that the President had to take a tough stand and form a strong government and deliver what we have promised to the people, and bring economic and political stability.
“First, they wanted the cabinet to be dissolved and once the new cabinet was formed, they wanted the prime minister to resign. Now, he has resigned. After two days, we are here, talking without being able to find a new PM or form a government. What will happen if the President resigns tomorrow? We don’t have a PM, and we won’t have a President. Then where are we heading as a nation? Slogans are good but implementation is hard”, he said.
Rajapaksa said that the President has to govern the country for now, and that people will understand Sri Lanka is going through a hard time. He said that everyone will rally around and support if the President makes the right choices and if the caretaker government or interim government will be formed for the next six months to one year
Rajapaksa said that in his personal opinion the best option is to have an independent government. He also denied allegations that pro-government mobs were responsible for the violence. “Provocation was not just from pro-government, but from anti-government protesters too. Violence cannot be accepted in any form. Protests were driven by certain politically motivated organisations, and later on it went out of control. We believe that law and order has to be restored and all political parties should calm their followers down. This whole violence was pre-planned and was part of propaganda by certain political parties from the looks of it. Look at how they attacked the homes of parliamentarians,” he said.
Rajapaksa added that the violence in Sri Lanka began in late March when protesters attacked the President’s residence. The Police took six hours to control the situation and now it has developed into attacking homes of lawmakers.
“The violence began even before protests at Galle Face started. You cannot blame just one side,” he said.
Rajapaksa also denied allegations that his family members are fleeing the country. He said that the anti-government propagandists purposely created that story.
“They started running around the airports. This is not just to kill people or destroy property but to kill Sri Lanka economically. From our family’s side, I make sure that we have no reason to go out of the country. We have always stood by our people.”
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President and representatives of IMF discuss progress of EFF

A comprehensive discussion regarding the progress of the Extended Fund Facility (EFF) agreed with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) took place on Thursday (06) at the Presidential Secretariat, between President Anura Kumara Disanayake and the IMF delegation.
The current government has already reached a staff-level agreement with the IMF on the third review regarding the extended arrangement under the Extended Fund Facility (EFF) of USD3 billion.
The details of this review are expected to be presented to the International Monetary Fund’s Board of Directors by the end of this month. In this regard, discussions were held regarding the progress and the government’s involvement in continuing the program moving forward.
Once the approval is granted by the IMF Executive Board, Sri Lanka is expected to release the fourth tranche of the extended loan, amounting to 333 million dollars.
The discussion was also attended by IMF Executive Director Dr. Krishnamurthy Subramanian, Alternate Executive Director Dr. P. K. G. Harischandra, Deputy Minister of Economic Development Dr. Anil Jayantha Fernando, Secretary to the President Dr. Nandika Sanath Kumanayake, Secretary to the Ministry of Finance Mahinda Siriwadana, and Governor of the Central Bank of Sri Lanka Dr. Nandalal Weerasinghe.
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New Commanders of the Tri-Forces meet the President

The newly appointed Commander of the Tri-Forces met with Commander-in-Chief, President Anura Kumara Disanayake on Thursday (6th) afternoon at the Presidential Secretariat.
The meeting was attended by Lieutenant General Lasantha Rodrigo, the new Army Commander; Vice Admiral Kanchana Banagoda, the new Navy Commander and Air Marshal Vasu Bandu Edirisinghe, the new Air Force Commander.
Following tradition, the new commanders formally met with the President after assuming their duties. During the meeting, they also presented the President with a commemorative token.
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Musk reveals ‘crazy waste’ of USAID funds in Sri Lanka

USD 7.9 mn spent on teaching Lankan journalists how to avoid “binary-gendered language”
USAID has spent $7.9 million to teach Sri Lankan journalists how to avoid “binary-gendered language”, Elon Musk who heads the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) said in a post on X on Thursday.
Musk called it a “Crazy waste of your tax money!”
Musk’s criticism came with a detailed breakdown of USAID’s spending across various countries, which he argued reflects misguided priorities. According to a document Musk shared, USAID has funded a range of projects globally, including $20 million for a new Sesame Street show in Iraq, $4.5 million to “combat disinformation” in Kazakhstan, and $6 million to transform digital spaces to reflect feminist democratic principles.
The list also included $1.5 million for art projects promoting the inclusion of people with disabilities and $2 million for sex changes and LGBT activism in Guatemala. $10 million worth of USAID-funded meals, allegedly ended up in the hands of an al-Qaeda-linked terrorist group, the document states.
Other USAID programmes include $25 million for Deloitte to promote green transportation in Georgia, $6 million for tourism development in Egypt, and $2.5 million to foster inclusion in Vietnam. The documents also pointed to $5 million awarded to EcoHealth Alliance, a group linked to bat virus research at the Wuhan lab, and $20 million for an organisation tied to what Musk described as a “key player” in the Russiagate impeachment inquiry.
Further funds were allocated for various LGBT-related initiatives worldwide, including $5.5 million for LGBT activism in Uganda, $6.3 million for men who have sex with men in South Africa, $3.9 million for LGBT causes in the western Balkans, and $6 million for advancing LGBT issues globally. Additionally, $2 million was allocated to promote LGBT equality through entrepreneurship in Latin America, while $1.5 million was designated for LGBT advocacy in Jamaica.
The data also highlighted spending closer to home, with $1.2 million going to help the African Methodist Episcopal Church Service and Development Agency in Washington, D.C., build a 440-seat auditorium. A further $1.3 million was provided to Arab and Jewish photographers, while $1.1 million supported an Armenian LGBT group.
Musk criticised other expenditures as well, including $3.9 million for artisanal gold mining in the Amazon and $500,000 aimed at solving sectarian violence in Israel just days before the October 7 Hamas attack.
Attention was also drawn to USAID’s $150 billion “whole-of-agency” climate strategy, which outlines efforts to build an “equitable world” while pursuing net-zero greenhouse gas emissions.
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