Excise Chief slams Liquor Licensee’s Association for organizing unlawful tax awareness workshop

Colombo, July 4 (Daily Mirror) - The Chief of Excise yesterday slammed the Sri Lanka Liquor Licensee’s Association for organizing an unlawful awareness programme for its members in line with the National Tax Week ‘Badu Shakthi’, saying a leading liquor company that sponsored the event had promoted its brands instead.

Commissioner General of the Department of Excise U L Udaya Kumara Perera told the Daily Mirror last evening that they had boycotted this tax awareness programme organized by the SLLLA on June 14th as the subject ministry, the Ministry of Finance had instructed them not to take part.

The SLLLA last week issued a statement criticizing several top public officials including the Excise Chief, Senior Assistant Secretary to the President and Deputy Finance Minister for having boycotted a special awareness programme organized by them to educate their countrywide members on the National Tax Week ‘Badu Shakthi’.

In response to this the Commissioner General of Excise said as government officials they are not bound to take part in events organized by any third party organization, which has clearly violated the National Authority on Tobacco and Alcohol (NATA) Act too.

He said they had received information that a top liquor manufacturing company in the country was the chief sponsor behind the special tax awareness programme organized at a popular star-class hotel in Negombo, that had been followed by cocktails and lunch for the participants.

“Even the head of ADIC Sri Lanka (Alcohol and Drug Information Centre) praised us for not attending this programme, which had been conducted in a manner not to educate the liquor license holders about the national tax week but to promote alcoholic beverages,” Udaya Kumara Perera said.