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Imminent purge in BOI
A scheduled board meeting of the Board of Investment (BOI) was cancelled last Friday amidst reports that Chairman Lalith de Mel had tendered his resignation to President Chandrika Kumaratunga and she had not accepted it. Asked about his reported resignation, Mr. de Mel told The Sunday Times last night, "I don't comment on rumours ".

When asked again whether he denied that the resignation was handed over, he repeated, "I don't comment on rumours". When Mr. de Mel was questioned whether the reports were incorrect he provided the same answer that he did not want to comment on rumours. The reports come in the wake of rising concern at the BOI that the President and pro-JVP trade unions were pressing for a purge of appointees under the previous UNF administration.

Twenty officials, including Mr. M. Faizer, Deputy Director-General (Investments) are ear-marked for removal, but Mr. de Mel is learnt to have initially resisted these moves, saying some of these officials were professionals. Two officials, Maj-Gen. (Ret.) Wasantha Perera and Retired DIG Gaya Pathikirikorale were sacked last week without inquiry, and at least one of them has consulted lawyers in a bid to sue the BOI for wrongful termination apart from suing Minister Anura Bandaranaike for allegedly defamatory statements. On Friday, despite the cancellation of the BOI board meeting, Mr. de Mel attended a BOI seminar at the BMICH, indicating that he still remained at the helm of the investment arm of the Government.

Whether this was after his resignation was turned down was not clear. Mr. de Mel had also come in for criticism by at least one senior Cabinet Minister who complained to President Kumaratunga that the Chairman devoted two weeks each month in London, and spent only the balance two weeks in Colombo's BOI office.

Figures provided by the BOI of its top 20 foreign investors last year show that at least half were existing investors like Dialog GSM, Lanka Bell and Celltel who signed fresh agreements or renewed existing ones with additional investments.

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