Video: Bonds worth Rs.2.7 trillion sold during previous regime - PM

23 May 2015 04:35 am

Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe said yesterday Treasury Bonds worth a staggering Rs.2.7 trillion had been sold by the Central Bank to an accomplice of the previous regime by violating standard tender procedure in 2012, 2013 and 2014.

He said the committee appointed by him to inquire into the controversial sale of Treasury Bonds during tenure of Central Bank Governor Arjuna Mahendran had come across these startling facts.

“The February Central Bank sale was only about Rs.10 billion and the decision on the sale had taken by the Tender Committee. Its decision had been later approved by Governor Mahendran. However, Treasury Bonds worth Rs. 2.7 trillion had been sold from 2012 to 2014 violating CB policies,” he said addressing the United National Party (UNP) activists at Sirikotha.   

He said February’s Bond sale had been carried out in a transparent manner at a public auction but said in previous years there had been no public auction and this had discouraged primary dealers of the Central Bank.
 
The Prime Minister said  Rs.2,437 billion worth Bonds had been sold after calling for tenders but the then CB Governor had been directly involved in the Tender Committee in violation of the standard procedure.

“The Governor cannot take action on behalf of the Tender Committee but that was what happened during tenure of the previous CB governor. The Committee had not been informed of the decisions of the then Governor. It is also not clear who purchased these bonds. Although the previous government had favoured its sycopants it failed to grant any relief to the ordinary people or pay them a living wage,” he said.

The PM said the Opposition was uncomfortable with the full report of the Committee being published because of the fear that the acts of blatant fraud and corruption during the previous regime would be revealed in the process.   

“The Opposition wants to cover up their acts of corruption by focusing only on Mr. Mahendran, whose name had been cleared by the Supreme Court. However, we agree with the Speaker’s decision to refer the committee report to COPE and to await its response,” he said.(Lahiru Pothmulla)

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