COPE tells SLC officials to come better prepared for committee meeting next month

• COPE Chairman raps SLC officials for attending committee meeting unprepared
• Meeting postponed after officials could not provide adequate information regarding irregularities at SLC
• Notes problems have arisen due to the inefficiency of financial administration of SLC
• Says public confidence in institution has plummeted

Parliamentary Committee on Public Enterprises (COPE) Chairman Charitha Herath rapped officials of Sri Lanka Cricket (SCL) for coming unprepared for a committee meeting last week and asked them to return in a month to answer questions about various irregularities in the institution.

The meeting was called to examine the Auditor General’s report on the financial performance of the SLC for 2017 and 2018 and its current performance. However it was postponed by Herath after officials failed to provide adequate information regarding queries that were raised by committee members.

Herath said that it has been observed that a number of problems had arisen due to the inefficiency of the financial administration of SLC and noted there was an increase in public dissatisfaction with the institution, saying SLC belonged to the country and not to just one party.

Committee members blamed Sri Lanka Cricket for not submitting to the audit the relevant documents such as contracts, letters of assignment and commencement of work and due dates for unfinished work amounting to over Rs. 240 million by 2017. Officials who attended the meeting failed to submit the relevant files.

The committee also paid special attention to the increase in the value of unfinished projects to the tune of Rs. 511 million by the year 2020 and questioned the non-recovery of Rs. 29 million in revenue due for sponsorship of the South Africa-Sri Lanka Cricket tour in 2018.

SLC Chairman Shammi Silva told the committee that the CID had commenced an investigation into the matter.

Chairman Prof. Charitha Herath instructed the Secretary to the Ministry of Youth and Sports Anuradha Wijekoon to conduct an inquiry and submit its report to the committee within a month.

It was revealed at the meeting that the money had been deposited in the account of an American citizen and that investigations were focused on how it happened.

The committee pointed out that the agreement regarding the recruitment of Chandika Hathurusinghe as the Head Coach of SLC was flawed and that Hathurusinghe had taken legal action as a result. SLC informed the committee that Hathurusinghe’s contract was for three years but he had to be removed prematurely as he did not make the expected changes.

It was revealed at the meeting that SLC has so far spent Rs. 20 million as legal fees for the case filed by Hathurusinghe.

The committee also noted that the Annual Reports of SLC have not been submitted to Parliament for several years.

The committee directed the Secretary to the Ministry to submit the reports to Parliament immediately.

The committee meeting was limited to one-and-a-half hours and it was decided to reconvene the meeting in another month.

Ministers Mahinda Amaraweera and Mahindananda Aluthgamage, State Ministers Indika Anuruddha, Ajith Nivard Cabraal and Nalaka Godahewa, Parliamentarians Patali Champika Ranawaka, Jagath Pushpakumara and Eran Wickramaratne and others were present at the meeting held last week.