Take legal action against fmr. SLC Executive Committee if found guilty: COPE

The Committee on Public Enterprises (COPE) has instructed Secretary to the Ministry of Sports Anuradha Wijekoon to take legal action if any of the former members of the Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) Executive Committee were found guilty.

The COPE chairman pointed out that the reason for the massive collapse of cricket in the country was not the fault of the players but the weaknesses of the cricket administration.

He said this at the COPE meeting convened to examine the Auditor General's report and its current performance for the financial years 2017 and 2018 of Sri Lanka Cricket.

The Committee pointed out that 123 out of the 162 approved cadre of Sri Lanka Cricket are contract positions which is a serious question and pointed out that the posts of Head of Finance, Legal Officer, Information Technology Officer and Internal Auditor should be permanent positions.

The Committee also recommended that the procurement process of Sri Lanka Cricket be streamlined and that a proper system be introduced to streamline it.

It was also discussed at the committee that the intervention of the Director General of Sports should be at a higher level than the current situation.

The Committee also recommended that Sri Lanka Cricket should develop a proper format for disbursing funds to sports associations.

The Committee also directed the Ministry of Sports and the Sri Lanka Cricket to take immediate action to amend the Sports Act expeditiously.

The Committee questioned the non-recovery of Rs. 29 million in revenue due for sponsorship of the South Africa-Sri Lanka Cricket tour in 2018 and the Executive Officer of SLC Ashley de Silva informed the Committee CID has commenced an investigation into the matter. It was revealed at the meeting that the money had been deposited in the account of an American named ‘Diamond Channel’ and that investigations were focused on how it happened.
Prof. Herath instructed Secretary to the Ministry of Sports Anuradha Wijekoon to conduct an inquiry and submit its report to the Committee within three months.

It was also revealed at the meeting that Rs. 30 million has been spent to take legal action against former head coach of Sri Lanka Cricket Chandika Hathurusinghe due to the shortcomings of his agreement.