FM agrees to Select Committee to probe corruption under previous regime

Foreign Minister Mangala Samaraweera   today agreed to the appointment of a Parliamentary Select Committee to probe the massive financial irregularities that are said to have taken place in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs during the previous regime.

The Minister gave his consent to a PSC   after JVP lawmaker Sunil Handunnetti suggested that such a Committee be set up to investigate the  many excesses that  the Foreign Minister alleged had taken place during the previous regime.

Speaking during the committee stage debate of the MFA, Minister Samaraweera said that the matters under probe included the acquiring a house on rent for the Sri Lankan Counsel General in Los Angeles which had been used by the son of former Defence Secretary Gotabaya Rajapaksa for more than one and held years even though there was no Consul General in that city.

The ministry has paid the rent for one year and nine months for the house. He said that close to Rs 399 million had been paid as rent from ministry funds to cover rent for the house.

The Minister also said that the former President and his family had spent around Rs 2.3 billion for overseas visits between 2012 to 2014.

The JVP MP suggested that the Minister should agree to the appointment of a PSC to prove these allegations.

Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe too endorsed the JVP MPs suggestion.

(CK)