2025-06-06
News Categories : Committee News
The Committee on Public Enterprises (COPE) has recommended the appointment of an independent investigation committee to examine all corruption and irregularities prevailing at the Sabaragamuwa University of Sri Lanka. Instructions were given to the Secretary of the Ministry of Education, Higher Education, and Vocational Education to appoint the said investigation committee without involving any officials of the current administrative authority and to conduct and complete the relevant investigations as soon as possible.
This was discussed during the Committee on Public Enterprises (COPE) held on the June 4th at the Parliament under the chairmanship of Hon. Member of Parliament (Dr.) Nishantha Samaraweera for the purpose of examining the Auditor General’s report and the current performance of the Sabaragamuwa University of Sri Lanka for the financial year 2023.
Furthermore, the incident involving Charith Dilshan, a student who committed suicide while studying in his second year at the university, was also discussed extensively in the committee. During this discussion, the Marshal of the university expressing his views regarding the New Year celebrations organized at the university, which allegedly contributed to the incident, stated that he was not informed about the event by the administration. He also stated that approval for the event was granted without following proper procedures. Furthermore, the Marshal also mentioned that he had informed the administration in writing about possible outcomes that could arise in student hostels. Accordingly, the committee chair pointed out that it appears there have been lapses in supervision regarding student activities by the administration. Consequently, the committee instructed ministry officials to conduct an effective and independent investigation into this incident as well.
The committee also discussed an incident where, in 2022, approval was granted for a contractor to excavate 500 cubes of soil free of charge from the university premises upon the request of a local council member of the Imbulpe Pradeshiya Sabha. Although internal approval had been granted by the administration to remove the soil, university officials stated that, upon realizing the mistake, no official approval was subsequently given to the contractor. However, it was revealed during the committee that even though the university’s security division had informed the administration about the removal of soil by the said contractor on 19.10.2022, the university administration had only filed a police complaint regarding the incident in 2024.
The committee also discussed the matter concerning the registration of students for courses at the university. Officials stated that, on average, around 7,000 students who receive university admission yearly do not register in the first round. However, they pointed out that the vacancies are filled after conducting several rounds of registration. Accordingly, the committee chair emphasized the importance of focusing attention on strengthening the state university system.
Furthermore, although over Rs. 123 million had been spent in 2014 for the construction of the university's sports ground and gymnasium, several issues had arisen such as water stagnation on the playground, surface roughness due to erosion of mixed soil, and cracking of side embankments, according to the Auditor General's Department. Based on a previous COPE recommendation, although the Central Engineering Consultancy Bureau (CECB) had renovated the side embankments and gymnasium and handed them over to the university, the Auditor General pointed out that the sports ground had not been properly accepted and maintained by the university. As a result, it was revealed during the committee that students faced significant difficulties in using the playground due to water stagnation and surface roughness.
When questioned about this, the university administration pointed out that due to the physical location of the area, termite mounds appear in places on the playground.
Commenting on this, the committee chair questioned the lack of a designated person responsible for maintaining the sports ground. He also inquired into the fact that, despite the magnitude of the project, no permanent engineer had been appointed for supervision, and instead, a project engineer was used for such duties, which was also highlighted by the Auditor General. In response, the university’s project engineer stated that the responsibility had not been assigned to him by the Vice Chancellor. However, it was revealed in the committee that, at one point, the sports ground maintenance had been handed over to the cleaning division, and at present, it is under the care of the sports division.
It was also disclosed that during the construction of a housing complex for university staff, more than Rs. 2.6 million had been paid to the contractor based on the certification of the project engineer, despite the contractor not having requested the amount.
Additionally, in the construction of the university’s new library building, it was disclosed that the contractor had abandoned the contract work midway, and since the performance bond was not encashed, a loss of more than Rs. 28.8 million had been incurred. Although a surcharge notice had been issued for this loss, it had not yet been recovered.
However, to prevent such situations from recurring, arrangements had been made to recruit a project manager to systematically supervise all construction projects. However, the said individual had resigned after serving for less than four months. The committee extensively discussed that he had resigned due to not receiving the requested service facilities.
Hon. Members of Parliament Dayasiri Jayasekara, Attorney at Law, M.K.M. Aslam, Samanmali Gunasingha, Sudath Balagalla, Jagath Manuwarna, Ruwan Mapalagama, Asitha Niroshana Egoda Vithana, (Dr.) Pathmanathan Sathiyalingam, Thilina Samarakoon, Chandima Hettiarachchi, Dinesh Hemanta, and Lakmali Hemachandra, Attorney at Law were present at this COPE meeting held.
2025-09-12
The Committee on Public Finance has granted approval for the 2026 budget estimate of the Commission to Investigate Allegations of Bribery or Corruption (CIABOC).This approval was granted during a meeting of the Committee held yesterday (Sep. 11th ) in Parliament, chaired by Hon. Dr. Harsha de Silva, Member of Parliament.During the meeting, the Chairman of the Committee pointed out that just as the Central Bank of Sri Lanka experience the financial independence, it is important to grant financial autonomy to institutions such as the Bribery Commission (CIABOC) and the Auditor General’s Department to ensure greater independence in their operations. He further stated that with such financial independence, these institutions would be able to function more autonomously, irrespective of which government is in power, and free from prevailing political authority. Accordingly, the Committee decided to inform the Minister of Finance, who is also the President, about this matter.Additionally, Hon. Dr. Harsha de Silva stated that the remuneration of the Chairman, Director General, and members of the Commission should be aligned with that of the President of the Court of Appeal. Therefore, as the salary of the President of the Court of Appeal is revised, the salaries of these officials should also be revised accordingly. The Committee Chair also noted that the necessary intervention will be made in this regard.Members of Parliament Ravi Karunanayake, Harshana Rajakaruna, (Dr.) Kaushalya Ariyaratne, Wijesiri Basnayake, Sunil Rajapaksha, Nimal Palihena, Thilina Samarakoon, and Nishantha Jayaweera participated in the meeting.
2025-09-12
For the first session of the Tenth Parliament, Hon. Member of Parliament Kabir Hashim was appointed as the new Chair of the Committee on Public Accounts (COPA). This appointment fills the vacancy created following the resignation of Hon. Member of Parliament Aravinda Senarath, who served as the Chair of the Committee on Public Accounts (COPA) for the first session of the Tenth Parliament, on 06.08.2025. The Committee convened in Parliament today (Sep. 12) to elect the new Chairman. For the position of Chair, the name of Hon. MP Kabir Hashim was proposed and seconded respectively by Hon. Members of Parliament J.C. Alawathuwala and Rohitha Abeygunawardhana. Subsequently, addressing the Committee, the new Chair stated that he expects to carry out his duties in a neutral manner, free from political bias, with the cooperation of all members. He further expressed his special appreciation for the work performed by former Chair Hon. Member of Parliament Aravinda Senarath and stated that he expects to carry out the responsibilities of his office even more effectively. Moreover, the new Chair indicated that he is prepared to take the necessary measures to further systematize the functions of the COPA Committee by formulating new plans. The occasion was also attended by Hon. Deputy Minister Sugath Thilakaratne, Hon. MPs (Dr.) M.L.A.M. Hizbullah, Rohitha Abeygunawardhana, J.C. Alawathuwala, Chamara Sampath Dasanayake, Hector Appuhamy, (Dr.) Kavinda Heshan Jayawardhana, Oshani Umanga, Ruwanthilaka Jayakody, Thushari Jayasingha, Attorney at Law, M.A.M. Thahir, Lal Premanath, Chanaka Madugoda, as well as Parliament officials including Director (Legislative Services) and Acting Director (Communication) M. Jayalath Perera.
2025-09-11
The Committee on Public Finance reviewed the country’s income, expenditure, and debt conditions during the first half of 2025. This took place at a meeting of the committee held in Parliament on the 9th September 2025, chaired by Honorable Member of Parliament Dr. Harsha de Silva. Accordingly, the Sri Lankan government has reported a strong fiscal performance for the first half of 2025 compared to the total revenue for the first six months of 2024, exceeding the mid-year target, officials from the Ministry of Finance informed the Committee. Presenting data, Finance Ministry officials pointed out that the total revenue collected from the half-yearly estimated income of Rs. 2,241 billion from January to June 2025 was Rs. 2,318 billion, which exceeded the half-yearly estimate by 3%. Meanwhile, the total government expenditure in the first half of 2025 was Rs. 3,467 billion, an increase of Rs. 367 billion compared to the expenditure in the first six months of 2024. The main reason for this increase has been debt servicing, which was Rs. 1,984 billion in the first half of 2025. Recurring expenditure on essential public services, including public sector salaries, pensions, social security programs such as ‘Aswesuma’ and ‘Samurdhi’, has also increased, Finance Ministry officials said. Furthermore, the Sri Lanka Customs Department has recorded a revenue of Rs. 996 billion between January and June 2025, recording a growth of 47% compared to the year 2024 (January - June). The revenue received from the import of automobiles contributed significantly to this growth, which had received Rs. 429 billion. Since the opening of vehicles for import, 220,026 vehicles have been imported into Sri Lanka so far, of which 154,537 vehicles have been cleared by Sri Lanka Customs, the Finance Ministry officials pointed out. Furthermore, the Hon. Members of the Committee also inquired from the Sri Lanka Customs Department about the issues faced by importers due to the time taken at Customs for container clearance activities of 9 - 10 days. Accordingly, the departmental officials informed the committee that a method is being developed to resolve the issue and complete the clearance of the relevant goods within 2-3 days. The Inland Revenue Department (IRD) also reported an increase, reporting an income of Rs. 1,040,388 million out of the estimated income of Rs. 1,022,691 million in the first half of 2025. Here, the departmental officials pointed out that TIN (Tax Identification Number) numbers have been issued for about 1.3 million Sri Lankans over the age of 18. Here, the Chairman questioned whether the expected economic growth target for this year can be achieved based on this data. However, Finance Ministry officials said that it can be assumed that economic growth will be around 3.1% this year. The Chairman of the Committee also instructed the officials to take steps to inform the Committee about the policy of the Ministry of Finance regarding the tax policy applied to cigarettes. The Committee also discussed the discrepancy between the forecasts made by the Central Bank of Sri Lanka and the Ministry of Finance regarding the country's foreign reserves at the end of the year. The meeting was attended by the Hon. Members of Parliament Ravi Karunanayake, Harshana Rajakaruna, Ajith Agalakada, M.K.M. Aslam, (Dr.) Kaushalya Ariyaratne, Nimal Palihena, Attorney-at-Law Chitral Fernando, Wijesiri Basnayake, Sunil Rajapaksa, Champika Hettiarachchi, Attorney-at-Law Lakmali Hemachandra, and Nishantha Jayaweera.
2025-09-10
A high level delegation from the CVF – V20 led by H.E Mohamed Nasheed, Secretary General of the CVF- V20 Secretariat and the former President and Speaker of Maldives held a special session in Partnership with the Sectoral Oversight Committee on Environment, Agriculture and Resource Sustainability. Welcoming the delegation, the Chair of the Sectoral Oversight Committee on Environment, Agriculture and Resource Sustainability Hon. Member of Parliament Hector Appuhamy emphasized that a separate institution must be created which is dedicated to the development agenda of Sri Lanka ensuring support for Climate Prosperity Plans. The Chair further stated that the Climate Prosperity Plan is not just another policy document and that it is a promise that despite our vulnerabilities, Sri Lanka will choose resilience and justice calling for all Parliamentarians and the government to work in cross party unity to endorse, strengthen and implement the updated Climate Prosperity Plan. This special session was held recently (Aug. 28) in Parliament, under the Chairmanship of Hon. Member of Parliament Hector Appuhamy and with the participation of the Hon. Leaders of the Opposition Sajith Premadasa, the Hon. Chief Opposition Whip Gayantha Karunathilaka, Hon. Members of Parliament, and officials representing the Ministry of Environment. H.E Mohamed Nasheed, Secretary General of the CVF- V20 Secretariat and the former Hon. President and Speaker of Maldives in his key note address stated that they consider the climate issue as a moral and ethical issue and now it has become a financial and economic issue. Under the Climate Prosperity Plan, he emphasized that they aim to find new ways of doing things which is sustainable. Hon. Leader of the Opposition Sajith Premadasa in his remarks elaborated on the importance of raising awareness on climate change within Parliament and outside. Following a presentation by the delegation the forum was open for a round table discussion. Thereafter, the delegation toured the Parliament premises.
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