JVP’s Handunnetti appointed COPE Chairman

By Ashwin Hemmathagama, Our Lobby Correspondent

Opposition lawmaker Sunil Handunnetti was appointed yesterday as the new Chairman of the Committee on Public Enterprises (COPE) in the 8th Parliament, which started functioning last August. 

Minister of City Planning and Water Supply Rauff Hakeem proposed MP Handunnetti while Deputy Minister of Power and Renewable Energy Ajith P. Perera seconded.

Handunnetti will be the 14th MP to hold this position in COPE, which examines the accounts of public corporations and of any business undertaking vested in the Government. COPE has the power to summon and question any person, call for and examine any paper, book, record or other documents, and has access to stores and property.

While the Public Accounts Committee exercises oversight in the financial performance of Government institutions, COPE has been established on 21 June 1979 to ensure the observance of financial discipline in public corporations and other semi-governmental bodies in which the Government has a financial stake. 

COPE, which consists of 31 members reflecting the party composition in the House, is established under Standing Order 126 at the beginning of each Parliamentary Session and the chairman is elected by the Members of the Committee at its first session. Its quorum is four. The duty of the committee is to report to Parliament on accounts examined, budgets and estimates, financial procedures, performance and management of corporations and other Government business undertakings.

The accounts of these organisations are audited by the Auditor-General and form the basis of the investigations of the Committee. It has the power to summon the relevant officials and such other people as it thinks fit to obtain evidence and call for documents. The Committee reports to the Parliament and the recommendations contained in their reports are deemed to be directives to the respective corporations or statutory boards for due compliance.

Since its inception, George Abeygunasekera, M. S. Amarasiri, John Amaratunga, Wimal Wickramasinghe, Rohan Abeygunasekera, D. P. Wickremasinghe, Prof. W.A. Wiswa Warnapala, Reggie Ranatunga, Jeyaraj Fernandopulle, Rohitha Bogollagama, Wijeyadasa Rajapakshe, W.D.J. Senewiratne, and D.E.W. Gunasekera have been the past COPE Chairmen.

Meanwhile, Deputy Minister of Megapolis and Western Development Lasantha Alagiyawanna was appointed as Chairman of Public Accounts Committee (PAC).