The resurrection of Kotelawala
View(s):Lalith Kotelawala considered a mystery to many having risen to the top of the corporate ladder, shaped a name for himself as a responsible business leader and then falls from grace in his role in the biggest-ever scam this country has seen, has gone and done it again.
This time he has ‘confessed’ that investments or rather some investments in his now-collapsed Golden Key credit card scheme came from ‘dirty, black money’.
In making this broad-brush statement – forget the fact that he owes billions of rupees to simple, ordinary people who faithfully believed in him just like a god-like preacher–, that black money was invested in this scheme, the founder of the Ceylinco empire has drawn the wrath of many, middle class investors in the scheme who are struggling to get their money back.
“This is not black money; this is our hard earned money. I am a government servant and struggled for 35 years to make this money and I invested it in Golden Key. I am 71 now and my life is completely lost as a result of the actions of this rogue,” one investor was quoted as saying in a recent news report.
Barring the likes of financial fraudster Emil Saundranayagam, Sri Lanka’s political arena, unfortunately, is well known for glorifying robbers, crooks, murderers, fraudsters and swindlers. While swindler Sakvithi Ranasinghe is behind bars, why not Kotelawala? The law should be equal to all … an issue that is increasingly coming under focus with the attention on former President Mahinda Rajapaksa, his family and cronies and how ill-gotten wealth was allegedly acquired.
Just before his Ceylinco empire collapsed starting with the crash of the Golden Key credit scheme, Kotelawala was a cult-like figure to millions of Sri Lanka, so much so that once he is said to have eyed the country’s presidency! Who wouldn’t when many people believe in you, trust your company, invest in it and believe it is safe.
Thousands of hard, working Sri Lankans desperate to get a higher interest rate to meet high cost of living standards which include costly education packages – here and abroad – for their children, invested in schemes such as Golden Key. Along with these down-to-earth, deep-rooted Sri Lankan investors, came the powerful businessmen, big time politicians and some wealthy cricketers who dumped billions of rupees of untaxed money. So while this scheme drew both clean and dirty money, what does the ‘resurrected’ Kotelawala say in a recent interview on state television.
In one instance, he is quoted as saying: “Kavuruhari komitiyak dala hoyanna thenpathkaruwan gena. Mokada eke thiyenne jara salli” (Someone should put a committee and investigate (the) depositors, because it has dirty money).
In the second part of the interview, he is quoted as saying: “Kalu salli loku poliyata demma me gollo”. (They have put black money at high interest rates).
In one sweeping statement, he has cast a cloud over all the 7,000-9,000 depositors in this scheme calling them rogue investors.
Kotelawala should not only be hauled up in courts once again for the failure of his company but also for inviting no-questions-asked black money.
Why is he breaking the long silence over black money now – seven years after Golden Key collapsed? The near collapse of the entire financial system – finance companies, Seylan Bank and other connected structures – are all attributed to the crisis at Golden Key (at that time). Shouldn’t Kotelawala and his ilk indirectly shoulder the blame for this? Well known at the time was how a powerful minister, businessmen and a cricketer got their money returned through the back-door via Kotelawala’s good offices just as the company was about to sink when a run on its deposits had begun. This is the dirty, black money that the former, god-like guru of business is talking about today, years later. Has he stuck a deal with the new regime to expose some persons that the Government is desperately going after but without sufficient evidence, and in return get a pardon?
More and more questions are surfacing with these new issues being raised by Kotelawala. While many Golden Key depositors, now living a life of penury having lost their life savings, are being sent from pillar to post trying to get some part of their investment back, Kotelawala keeps popping up on and off with grand statements on how he can pay off all the depositors, and now, claiming that the investments (some or all) was dirty money.
Aging depositors have seen it all – in the past few years; cases filed, Central Bank interventions, court rulings including the highest in the land (Supreme Court), internal fights between associations representing depositors, promises from new regimes, new officials, etc, etc.
But yet to be seen is a fair and equitable system of payment that would be to the total satisfaction of all the investors. Both the new gurus at the Finance Ministry and the Central Bank have also made the usual promises but depositors are not buying.Only a few of those responsible for the biggest (or among the biggest) financial fraud in the country have been hauled before courts. The others (at large) continue to enjoy the luxury of their positions, driving or being driven in BMWs and Audis, living in luxury homes here or abroad probably with swimming pools and earning nine digit salaries (and continuing to evade taxes). All this, while investors who put their faith in them are in the ‘jail of all time’ forced to live in debt for the rest of their lives.
The Government’s recently set-up Financial Crimes Investigation Division (FCID) is probing high-profile financial fraud cases. Furthermore Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe told parliament this week that the government is setting up a special bureau similar to the Serious Fraud Office of the UK to probe financial frauds.
Fraudsters involved in the Golden Key case and other connected crimes, that have led to the deaths of many investors and resulted in untold suffering to others, should be investigated by these two special units too which would have far more expertise than the Central Bank and related institutions.
The Prime Minister or Deputy Minister Harsha de Silva should assure parliament that these new units would not only investigate the ones involving politicians of the previous regime but also the Golden Key, CIFL and other serious white collar crimes.In the meantime, Kotelawala shouldn’t be making statements that not only mislead but are geared to gain credit and sympathy for himself (‘I am a poor man now”) while depositors continue to suffer in vain. The law needs to deal with the likes of Kotelawala firmly and either jail or clear him for good – one way or the other.