What the UNP Leader told Parliament

"We expect all reports must be true and accurate. Today I found in the FT that what I said (yesterday) is reported in three sentences (reference to 5 July Daily FT’s Page 1 story titled ‘Ranil calls for suspension of EPF investments’). I want to bring this to your (House) notice specifically more than anything else because that (FT) is one of the papers which is in the pay of this (stock market) mafia and they are not publishing this.

I know that they are very much in touch with the mafia, they are very much in touch with the Central Bank. They know how the money is passed, what happens. I thought I should mention it because at least people will know, now be aware that FT is one of the papers which are rigging this (Stock market) and they (people) will be careful when they try to follow what the paper has published before purchasing shares. "

The above was the specific reference to the FT during Wickremesinghe’s speech in Parliament on Thursday, 5 July 2012.

Editor’s Note:

Though it dealt with many issues the FT treated the latest statement from Wickremesinghe as a follow up to his previous statement made on 21 June, which the FT splashed as the front page main story the next day. The latest statement was featured along with reports on the market.The box elsewhere on this page confirms the FT’s expose of frequent investments by EPF as well as connected issues. Below we list the FT’s regular coverage on the UNP’s own statements, which Wickremesinghe seems to have overlooked. Daily FT denies all allegations made by Wickremesinghe.

2010

• August 9: UNP blasts Govt. CB for EPF buying (this was after FT expose on 20 June 2010 in lead story titled ‘Meet your banker – The Govt!’)
• August 21: Govt. eroding financial market confidence – UNP

2011

• April 1: Dr. Harsha De Silva challenges Central Bank on EPF’s investments
• June 14: UNP hails IMF’s dig at governance over EPF investments in banks
• October 19: UNP MP renews warning over fate of EPF’s questionable investments in stock market

2012

• January 18: UNP urges COPE to summon CB, Labour Ministry officials over EPF
• May 15: UNP says bigger crisis is EPF investments, NSB-TFC deal is peanuts
• May 23: Harsha rebuffs CB’s rosy EPF story; Parliament told EPF has lost Rs. 4.2 billion in value over investments in five listed companies
• May 23: UNP asks for Parliamentary Select Committee to probe NSB-TFC, EPF and other state entity deals
• June 1: Summon SEC, CSE officials, Ravi K writes to COPE
• June 22: Ranil raises red flag over EPF, ETF in Parliament

• June 29: EPF investments in CSE have lost Rs. 12 b in value alleges Harsha

• July 5: Ranil calls for suspension of EPF investments