FR petition says govt. deprived itself of USD 8 bn

By Shamindra Ferdinando

Chairperson of the Committee on Public Finance (COPF) Anura Priyadarshana Yapa yesterday (08) said that he would initiate an inquiry into the cancellation of several foreign-funded projects, following the last presidential election, in Nov 2019.

Yapa said so responding to The Island query whether he would act on Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe’s request for a parliamentary probe into the cancellation of such projects.

Alleging that the unjustifiable government action deprived the country of much needed foreign investment, therefore contributed to the economic meltdown, Premier Wickremesinghe declared that Tokyo was unhappy. The Prime Minister’s Office quoted the UNP leader as having told Parliament on Tuesday: “Japan is our longtime friend. A nation that has helped our country greatly. But they are now unhappy with us due to the unfortunate events of the past. Our country had failed to formally notify Japan of the suspension of certain projects. Sometimes the reasons for these suspensions were not even stated.”

Lawmaker Yapa said that he, too, felt an inquiry was required into the matter.

On the basis of certain reports received from an unidentified person, Premier Wickremesinghe told the House that some of the projects that had been undertaken and partly implemented by Japan were halted midway.

Premier Wickremesinghe wants COPF to investigate cancellation of the Liquid Natural Gas (LNG) projects, undertaken by India and Japan. The Premier has alleged that the CEB halted both projects without at least giving justifiable reasons.

Lawmaker Yapa said that the allegation pertaining to putting on hold, projects funded by Japan, to the tune of USD 3 bn, by 2019, was quite serious.

MEP leader Dinesh Gunawardena served as the Foreign Affairs Minister. Prof. G.L. Peiris succeeded Gunawardena, in August 2021.Former Commander of the Navy Admiral Jayanath Colombage served as Secretary to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs till recently.

Legal sources said that cancellation of several high profile foreign funded projects, including the Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC) project had been cited in a fundamental rights petition, recently filed against the former Finance Ministers, Mahinda Rajapaksa, Basil Rajapaksa and Ali Sabry, other members of the Cabinet, the Monetary Board of the CBSL, former Governors of the CBSL, Prof. W.D. Lakshaman and Ajith Nivard Cabraal, former Finance Secretary S.R. Attygalle, Monetary Board member S.S.W. Kumarasinghe, former Presidential Secretary Dr. P.B. Jayasundera and three Commissioners of the Commission to Investigate Allegations of Bribery or Corruption (CIABOC). Premier Wickremesinghe has been made the first respondent as he is the incumbent Premier.

The petition, filed by Dr. Athulasiri Kumara Samarakoon of the Open University of Sri Lanka, Soosaiappu Neavis Morais and Dr. Mahim Mendis, in terms of Articles 17 and 126 of the Constitution, alleged that after the last presidential election several projects, that had been finalized and would have generated substantial revenue in foreign exchange, were stopped. The petition named the cancelled projects as the Light Rail Project, East Container Terminal (ECT) involving India, and Japan, the Central Highway Phase 3 and 4 with Japan and India, and the MCC Agreement with the US.

The MCC had been among three other agreements sought by the US. The yahapalana government entered into the Access and Cross Servicing Agreement (ACSA) in August 2017. Talks on Status of Forces Agreement (SOFA) were stalled.

The petitioners stated that the projects had been done away with on the directives of President Gotabaya Rajapaksa. Asserting had those agreements were implemented the country wouldn’t have been in the current predicament, the petitioners brought to the notice of the Supreme Court that the first respondent before being appointed as the Premier on May 12 declared the country was deprived of USD 4,000,000,000 due to the cancellation of those projects.

The petitioners further stated that the incumbent dispensation caused the current calamity by turning down of USD 400,000,000 IMF facility.

Authoritative sources said that the government antagonized Japan by not even giving prior notice of the utterly reprehensible decision. Sri Lanka violated diplomatic protocol, sources said, Japan’s unenthusiastic response to President Gotabaya Rajapaksa’s request for USD 3 bn loan should be examined against the backdrop of our irresponsible conduct, sources said. Japan has advised Sri Lanka that they would consider lending after the government reached agreement with the IMF or get close to the finalization of the required facility.

Meanwhile, Sri Lanka’s Ambassador in Tokyo Sanjiv Gunasekera would leave office on June 15. Gunasekera, a close associate of President Gotabaya Rajapaksa, informed the President, on May 09, of his decision to quit on June 09. However, he would continue for a week in view of some official commitments.