The Parliamentary Committee on Public Enterprises (COPE) has instructed to file complaints with the Criminal Investigations Department (CID) and the Bribery Commission on irregularities concerning the Sri Lanka Institute of Information Technology (SLIIT), Minister Wasantha Samarasinghe said in Parliament today.
Addressing the Parliament, Minister Samarasinghe said that the Yahapalana Government and its entire Cabinet of Ministers must take responsibility for the financial scam reported at SLIIT.
He explained that financial irregularities had occurred due to the Yahapalana Government removing SLIIT from the Mahapola Scholarship Fund and converting it into a limited company.
“Until 2015, SLIIT was operated under a management board operated under the Mahapola Scholarship Fund. However, in 2015, the Yahapalana Government decided to enter into an agreement with the management board without the knowledge of the Mahapola Scholarship Fund. No official approval was granted for this agreement by the subject ministry, while no such decision had been taken by the Mahapola Scholarship Fund,” he said.
Minister Samarasinghe revealed that a Presidential Commission appointed to look into the matter had found that the agreement had been signed by the then Government and Cabinet, consisting of Ranil Wickremesinghe, Maithripala Sirisena, and Sajith Premadasa, disregarding regulations.
“In 2017, this government and Cabinet made a decision to convert SLIIT into a limited company, disregarding the recommendations of the Presidential Commission. They have also donated Rs. 408 million from the SLIIT’s profit to the Mahapola Scholarship Fund. No one knows where they got this money,” he said.
Minister Wasantha Samarasinghe said that complaints will be filed with the CID and the Bribery Commission in this regard to initiate legal action.
He added that measures are also being taken to bring the Sri Lanka Institute of Information Technology under the purview of the Mahapola Scholarship Fund once again. (Newswire)
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