The First Ladys irregular deal of securing Rs.

180 million from a ship racket - State secrets 2

Thursday, 01 August 2013 06:55

The organization, Government Servants Against Corruption, has issued the second expose on the state secrets series. The latest report is on how First Lady Shiranthi Wickremasinghe Rajapaksa has irregularly taken Rs. 180 million in public funds in the early months of 2006 after President Mahinda Rajapaksa assumed office in 2005. Following is the second expose: It was ships that transported food, water and other necessities to the North during the tenure of former President Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunge when the war was in progress. The office of the Essential Services Commissioner had taken on rent ships belonging to private owners to carry out the transportation of goods. These ships transported rice, coconuts, dhal sugar and even fuel and cement to the traders in the North. It was the office of the Essential Services Commissioner provided the approvals to transport the goods and the required payments for the ships. The state intelligence service had informed the Security Council at the time that the some of the ship owners had links with the LTTE as well. It was only a limited number of businessmen who were granted approval to transport goods to the North. Among those were casino businessman Dhammika Perera and

the slain UNP MP T. Maheswaran. It was found that Maheswaran had links with the LTTE while Dhammika Perera had a link to the LTTE through the father of his second wife, who is a Tamil national. First Lady Shiranthi Rajapaksas brother Nishantha Wickremasinghe, who is the current Chairman of SriLankan Airlines, and his son Dilshan Wickremasinghe have also operated a small ship to transport goods to the North at the time. They have supplied goods and services to the North through a company called, Lanka Maritime Services Limited. However, the Chandrika Kumaratunge government decided to stop the transportation of goods to the North through privately owned ships following continuous reports given by the Sri Lanka Navys intelligence units that the ships after leaving the Colombo Port took into them arms and ammunition from LTTE boats in mid sea off the Modera area. The arms and ammunition had been hidden among the sacks of rice and other goods. The transportation of goods to the North was then completely taken over by the Navy and it was the Navy that took on rent ships from private owners to transport goods. Dhammika Perera and Nishantha Wickremasinghe had complained to the arbitration board in Colombo against the governments decision. Judge Sosa after considering the case had ordered the government to pay compensation amounting to Rs. 4 million to Nishantha Wickremasinghes company. However, after Mahinda Rajapaksa assumed office as President in 2005, a directive was issued to Presidential Secretary Lalith Weeratunge to release a sum of Rs. 180 million as compensation to the brothers company that operated ships to the North. Although Lalith Weeratunge has informed the relevant ministry, the ministry officials have said that action could not be taken to go above the decision given by the arbitration court. Due to the pressure from the First Lady, Weeratunge had then appointed a committee headed by him to make the payment. The committee included two officials from the Presidential Secretariat and a junior official from the Attorney Generals Department. Weeratunges committee had then ordered Treasury Secretary Dr. P.B. Jayasundera to make a compensation payment of Rs. 180 million to Wickremasinghes company. Weeratunges committee had issued the directive after ignoring the order issued by the arbitration court. However, Dr. Jayasundera had taken steps to issue a cheque for Rs. 180 million to the First Ladys brother as directed by Weeratunges committee. It is in this manner that First Lady Shiranthi Wickremasinghe Rajapaksa commenced her irregular and corrupt deals misusing her powers. Government Servants Against Corruption is in possession of many other corrupt deals of the First Lady where she had provided benefits to her family and friends by abusing her powers. We will publish them when the organization releases these reports.

Posted by Thavam