Amid the mounting economic and political crisis in Sri Lanka, a post claiming that multinational brands including Pepsi, Coca-Cola, Pizza Hut and KFC are winding up operations in the country has gone viral on social media.
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“With the collapse of the rupee multinational companies leaving the country,” says the Sinhala post, which has garnered over 1,400 views on Facebook, as of June 2.
Sri Lanka is in the throes of an economic crisis, which has manifested itself in a crippling shortage of fuel and medicines, skyrocketing prices of essential commodities and frequent power blackouts.
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The island nation has been struggling to pay for essential imports due to a shortage of foreign exchange reserves, and recently defaulted on its debts for the first time in its history.
Even as the country was witnessing long queues at fuel stations, the prices of petrol and diesel were hiked on May 24. A week later, the government hiked tax rates in a bid to boost revenues.
Public anger over the state of affairs has morphed into a protest movement calling for the resignation of President Gotabaya Rajapaksa.
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When contacted, all four firms featured in the viral post denied that they were exiting the country.
“I can assure you that there are no such plans for any pull out from the country. This post is false and fake news,” said Amar Raj Singh, Chairman & Managing Director at Gamma Pizzakraft India & Gamma Pizzakraft Lanka Pvt Ltd., a franchisee of Pizza Hut in Sri Lanka.
Coca-Cola issued the following statement: “In Sri Lanka, The Coca-Cola Company is celebrating its 61st Anniversary this year. Having entered the island in 1961, the company’s purpose in Sri Lanka remains clear - to refresh the nation and make a difference. Coca-Cola has been able to make a positive difference in the lives of all Sri Lankans and will be doing so for decades to come!”
Pepsi and KFC also denied that they had any plans to leave Sri Lanka.
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