President to meet all party leaders today over bond, PRECIFAC reports

President Maithripala Sirisena is scheduled to meet all party leaders over the reports of the Presidential Commission of Inquiry into the controversial Treasury Bond Issuance and the Presidential Commission of Inquiry to Investigate and Inquire into Serious Acts of Fraud, Corruption and Abuse of Power (PRECIFAC).

The move follows Speaker Karu Jayasuriya summoning President Secretary Austin Fernando on 24 January, to provide clarifications on the bond report.

He spoke about today’s meeting during a breakfast meeting with editors and heads of media held on 26 January.

The President said he decided to convene the meeting to set the record straight about the Bond Commission and PRECIFAC reports as the Opposition had alleged some pages were missing. 

On Friday, Sirisena denied the allegation that some pages were missing or withheld but added that the full documents could fill two lorries. There are certain contents in the report and documents which have to be kept in secrecy, he said, as they would be required at the time legal action was taken.

He recalled that after receiving the Bond Commission and PRECIFAC reports, the Opposition had continuously urged for them to be made public and for a debate to be held immediately. 

“I think the demand to make the reports public was for political reasons, but in my view it is significant as it concerns the economy of the country. Therefore, it’s necessary to address various issues raised in the report,” he said. 

“Within three days, I went through it and made a statement with regard to it after consulting the Attorney General, the Central Bank and senior legal experts and senior public servants. This statement wasn’t drafted by me but was a collectively prepared one, which is a first in my near 50-year political career. Thereafter the bond commission and PRECIFAC reports were presented in Parliament. However, surprisingly these parties are now silent after the reports were made public as both expose their corruption and fraud,” Sirisena told the breakfast meeting.