News
Vijitha Herath makes another allegation, but Kanchana stands his ground
By Saman Indrajith
The JVP-led NPP alleged in Parliament, on Tuesday, that a great deal of public funds had been siphoned off through a deal to import crude oil to Sri Lanka from the United Arab Emirates from January to April this year.
JVP-led NPP MP Vijitha Herath said that the Cabinet approval had been granted for importing crude oil from United Arab Emirates-based Coral Energy DMCC Company but the delivery had been made by a different company of which the official address indicated that it was a jewellery shop in the UAE.
Herath said that the Cabinet of Ministers had granted permission on December 19, 2022, for importing crude oil from the Coral Energy DMCC for the four months from January to April 30, 2023. The first ship carrying crude oil reached the Colombo Port on March 25 and the Ceylon Petroleum Corporation unloaded the consignment of 2.8 million barrels of crude oil of the brand known as Siberian Light on the following day. Later, it came to light that the delivery had been made by a different company by the name of Fontus Trading DMCC. The officials of the CPC have complained that this brand of crude oil was substandard. This is an illegal act. It is illegal for the CPC to unload oil from a company which has not been given Cabinet approval. A huge sum of public money has been spent,” Herath said.
Energy Minister Kanchana Wijesekera accused MP Herath of misleading the House with false information. These are groundless allegations,” the Minister said.
MP Herath then tabled the copies of Cabinet approval and tender application by the Fontus DMCC and a Cabinet paper, signed by Minister Wijesekera, seeking the approval to grant the Fontus DMCC permission to supply crude oil to Sri Lanka. “This Cabinet paper was rejected. After that the approval was granted to the Coral Energy DMCC, but the delivery has been made by the Fontus DMCC. The Attorney General’s opinion, too, has been sought to get the approval for the Fontus DMCC, however the AG has rejected the proposal. I am tabling the letter by the AG opposing this deal with the Fontus DMCC. The government needs to explain where the massive sum of money had gone through this illegal act,” the MP said.
As government members tried to disrupt MP Herath’s speech, the Deputy Chairman of Committees Angajan Ramananthan was seen trying to bring the House under control.
Minister Wijesekera accused MP Herath of misleading the House and challenged the latter to state the same outside Parliament, if possible.
“I have tabled all documentary proofs and requested that they be included in the Hansard. The Minister tried to get the Cabinet’s approval for this Fontus Company once again on April 03, this year. I table that document, too. This deal has been opposed by the Procurement Committee, the AG and even the officials of CPC have complained that the Siberian Light is substandard. This is how the government plays with public money,” the MP said.
A group of Tamil Progressive Alliance (TPA) members, including its Leader Mano Ganesan, met President Anura Kumara Dissanayake on Thursday (02) morning at the Presidential Secretariat.
Extensive discussions were held on the issues faced by the Malayagam communities, particularly in relation to education, housing and land, as well as on the urgent measures required to address these concerns. The President paid special attention to all these matters.
Attention was also drawn to the recruitment of qualified Tamil-medium teachers to address the teacher shortage in estate sector schools and this too was discussed at length.
Members of Parliament P. Digambaram and V. Radhakrishnan, along with several other party members, were present at the meeting.
Minister of Foreign Affairs, Vijitha Herath, held talks with Deputy Foreign Minister of Russia Andrey Rudenko at the Foreign Ministry, in Colombo, on Thursday (02), with both sides reaffirming their commitment to strengthening bilateral relations.
The Sri Lanka Ministry of Foreign Affairs said the visiting Russian Deputy Minister noted that Russia regarded Sri Lanka as a long-standing friend.
Rudenko assured that Russia stood ready to support Sri Lanka when required, including in the swift supply of Russian oil to help address the current energy challenges, encouraging Russian investors to explore new opportunities in the country and promoting increased tourist arrivals.
He also expressed Russia’s readiness to provide compensation for Sri Lankan war veterans who had lost their lives in the ongoing conflict between Russia and Ukraine.
Minister Herath welcomed Russia’s willingness to assist, emphasising that Sri Lanka valued the support extended by its “old friend”, particularly at a time when the country was facing pressing energy needs.
He noted that the two countries shared nearly seven decades of diplomatic relations and said the present moment provided an opportunity to further strengthen ties, including through long-term trade agreements.
The discussions focused on enhancing cooperation in the fields of energy, investment, tourism and diplomacy, with both sides reiterating their commitment to further deepen the longstanding friendship between Sri Lanka and Russia.
Police yesterday arrested 157 foreign nationals in connection with an alleged organised online financial scam, conducted from a hotel in the Iranawila area in Chilaw.
The suspects were taken into custody during a raid carried out by the Police while they were staying at the hotel in Iranawila.
Police said the arrested group included 143 nationals from China, 13 from Bangladesh and one from Vietnam.
Investigators suspect the group had been involved in a coordinated online financial scam, targeting victims through digital platforms.
The suspects are being detained for further questioning while investigations are continuing to determine the full extent of the operation and whether additional individuals were involved.Police said further inquiries are underway.
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