Seventy seven days have now passed since the “Weliamuna/Jayaratne” report and findings on Sri Lankan Airlines has been handed over to Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe exposing corruption and fraud committed by the former Rajapaksa government. The entire country now wonders if the premier will ever table the report in parliament due to his lackadaisical approach displayed where people who voted for Yahapalanaya are now begin to get concerned.
J. C. Weliamuna
The non-disclosure of the Weliamuna/Jayaratne report to parliament and subsequent recommendations by the Board of Inquiry not been adhered to thus far, is bound to end up having serious repercussions for Premier Ranil Wickremesinghe with the general elections just around the corner.
The BOI headed by the current Chairperson of Transparency International Sri Lanka and lawyer J.C. Weliamuna and his four man team, which also comprised good governance activist Chandra Jayaratne, interviewed scores of the airline’s staff who voluntarily came forward. Staff spilt many a bean regarding corruption that ran into billions of rupees, besides manipulations of service contracts and abuse of power within the senior management of the national carrier. The findings of the now known report with Chandra Jayaratne also being instrumental in the inquiry, recommended that the former President Rajapaksa’s brother in law, the airline’s Chairman Nishantha Wickramasinghe and its CEO Kapila Chandrasena be criminally prosecuted.
Besides the resignation of both the Chairman Wickramasinghe and CEO Chandrasena, only Captain Druvi Perera’s post of Chief Operations Officer was scrapped on the 31st of May 2015, that eventually cost the tax payer Rs 3.5million. This whopping sum is equivalent to the annual salaries of three supreme court judges.
Employees of Sri Lankan Airlines are currently up in arms as those who fearlessly came forward are now being hounded by those corrupt individuals who still continue to hold power, especially with only a few being re-assigned negligible portfolios within the airline.
“We fear for our jobs now as most of us who were promised protection to come forward and blurt information in an official staff notice are now paying the price for trusting the present government’s promise. Currently over 6800 employees are uncertain about their future ” said a disgruntled very senior employee of the airline.
The senior managers of the airline’s commercial and finance departments that raked in millions due to personal kick backs and commissions, still simply rule the roost and are marking time hoping that the former government will come into power where they could then safely secure their posts.
Many outsourced contracts and suppliers such as the controversial awarding of the supply of duty free and wines to Phoenix Rising Ventures Pvt Ltd headed by a former Board Director Raju Chandiram of the airline still continue to milk the airline in millions of rupees by the day.
Ben Hurling / June 17, 2015
Nothing will happen indeed. Mark my words. All thieves at the top are inter-connected and are inter-dependent. They have each others’ corrupt backs.
There is no reason what so ever to delay punishing band of thieves who shamelessly robbed a critical national asset, Sri Lankan Airlines. While asking impoverished Sri Lankans who pay taxes via essential gorceries and vital meds to finance the Airline.
Ranil’s appraoch is not very different from former uneducated dictator. Only more sophiticated and high-tech. But, result is the same.
Sri Lanka is truly cursed by SLFP & UNP.
Cheers!
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Dev / June 17, 2015
Nothing will happen sine they are doing the same thing, Ben !
Ravi K has appointed his brother in law T.M.R. Bangsa Jayah as the Insurance corporation MD with no apparent experience in the insurance industry.
http://www.srilankainsurance.com/news/93.php
Ravi K of course not not see anything wrong with his appointment !
http://www.lankabusinessonline.com/ravi-k-justifies-insurance-corporation-mds-appointment/
Anyone see any difference between this and MR appointing his bother in law to the “Sri Lankan Airlines” ?
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maalumiris / September 3, 2015
@Dev
Ravi K can do no wrong.. so stop criticising him ! :)
In fact, no one should be allowed to criticise any aspect of our new Yahapalanaya
Note to self: stop criticising Yahapalanaya
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Piranha / June 17, 2015
I suspect Ranil is delaying submitting the report to parliament because he is waiting for an opportune moment to get maximum benefit politically.
I am sure this and other investigations conducted by the FCID and CIABOC will be released once the election date is announced to cause maximum damage to Rajapaksa and his cronies’ electoral prospects.
Ranil is no fool and he will not allow this opportunity to go waste.
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Gamarala / June 17, 2015
No wonder MR is praising RW. He is protecting MRs family members. Shiranthi, Nshantha Wickramasinghe etc.
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Park / June 17, 2015
If no one else, Chandra Jayaratne is a honest person. He will only keep quite for certain period of time. The day he feels that the Yahapalanaya Government is not presenting the report to the public, Chandra Jayaratne will talk. This will happen.
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Harry Hatton / June 17, 2015
After CT exposed this guy’s 3.5 million pay out has the report any validity ?
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Dr.Rajasingham Narendran / June 17, 2015
I think the Presudent and PM should submit all available reports including Tissa Vitharnege’s APRC and the Welkada jail riot ( old and new) to parliament immediately. These are public property and the people have to know their contents, The elections can be held only when the present parliament is dissolved, Further, there will be no parliament to submit the reports, once it is dissolved.
These reports when released and become the subject of enlightened debate will also educate the public on the depths to which this country has sunk, Tactics may be important to political parties, burst we expect honesty and openness from our government. The President and PM should be more statesman than politicians while holding office!
Dr.Rajasingham Narendran
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Ben Hurling / June 17, 2015
Dr.Rajasingham Narendran,
I have no idea why Welikada Jail massacre report is being delayed.
Who is protecting who? Why?
If we cannot deliver justice to a bloody massacre in the middle of our capital city, we are indeed a failed state. We might as well agree with the die-ass-pora.
Cheers!
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Thenne / June 17, 2015
Present SriLankan Chairman is a good PAL and a business partner of Aravinda who’s BIL was Kapila Chandrasena. Very clear current SriLankan board is not keen to do anything on the report. The so called corrupt senior management team will be laughing at all those volunteered to give evidence at Weliamuna Committee. What a joke?
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K.A Sumanasekera / June 17, 2015
Has Ranil tabled the UNP Lawyers Report on Mahendran and Son in Law Associates” …
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Sumane / June 17, 2015
Your heading should have been ” Will Ranil be there to table the Weliamuna/Jayaratne report in parliament”?
Everything in the country has come to a stand still, Political interference and influence in the National airline is dragging the company down,tarnishing it’s reputation.
Employees are waiting,watching.
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K.A Sumanasekera / June 17, 2015
Srilankan Airlines has a tremendous safety Record among its peers , bar the one incident where all brand new AirBus Fleet was demolished by Pirahaparan and his Brave Child Soldiers.
People who paid for the carnage and drank cheap Bubblyto toast and boast,are now part of the Yahapalanaya and probably provided finance to install it too..
You know who I am talking about…
Singapore Girls even find hard to match our SL Airlines service for us who travel Cattle Class, unlike TNA Abrahams..
All this UNP Committee could find were a few parking problems of our good Drivers, who didn’t release the hand brake on time or didn’t apply it .
Big deal.
And Yahapalan Boss unelected Ranil not only picked his own mates but paid them LKR 3.5 Million to tell us about these piddly issues.
Wonder how much these dudes know about driving modern Aircraft ?..
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Douglas / June 17, 2015
The only good thing that happened out of this “marriage” of MY3 and Ranil was the defeat of a “Tyrant” named MR. Even they boast of 19A, it was a “cut and chopped” legislation; yet something without nothing. What more to expect from a Prime Minister who could not find a person to fit into the shoes of the Governor of Central Bank from within Sri Lanka? He also could not be without another eighty year old man who ran away from Sri Lanka after he served Late MR. Premadasa. He was the man who “doled” out Rs. 200 million from the Treasury to the LTTE. He is today his “Adviser” on Finance matters. Then look at the people who were appointed by him to run the affairs of the Sri Lankan airlines. Now MR praises Ranil. WHY? Everyone in this country must question that and find answers. The “ANSWER” is visible. Everyone must also not forget: who was summoned to the Temple Trees in the late hours of the conclusion of the Presidential elections? He was none other than Ranil. Who brought him to the Temple Trees? He was none other than the Chairman of Hilton Hotel married to MR’s nice Mrs. Nirupama Rajapakse. He was one among “Deal Makers” for the Rajapakse family. Also this PM is responsible to a great extent of bringing FCID to be questioned in courts. That aspect is being argued in courts now. That “loop hole”(the appointment of a sub committee of the Cabinet to overlook the affairs of the FCID) was provided to facilitate “Big Time” swindlers of Public Property to escape arrest. Now this PM does not want to go through with the 20A. He and his party come up with various amendments every now and then and “Demand” the dissolution of the Parliament. Why? He and his party have calculated to win 115 seats. My foot. They are in a “DREAM”.
Believe me; Noting will happen to anyone in our National Airline who have swindled and mismanaged all its affairs including the “sex” scandals that were highlighted in Walimune report. If these are immediately investigated and action taken; who are to be taken to task? NONE other than the members of the Rajapakse family including MR’s sons. Please be reminded of Yoshitha’s appointment to the Navy too. All relate to and directly connected with Rajapakse- the Royal Family. This “Binding Relationship” between MR and Ranil was not NEW and it was established since MR became the President. Are we ready to allow it go on indefinitely? It must be STOPPED for the good of the country.
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uthungan / June 18, 2015
Douglas
‘ This ‘Binding Relationship’ between MR and Ranil was not NEW and it was established since MR became President.
You have said correct. I wish I could have written all what you have.
“YAHAPLANAYA” is the biggest fraud perpetrated on the people who voted believing My3 and Ranil on 8th January 2015. The only redeeming factor is that MR was defeated and packed off to Medamulana.
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rew / June 21, 2015
Maithri will only be able to properly guide this country once RW is sent off to the scrap heap, just as MR was.
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justice / June 17, 2015
Douglas,
I am afraid that you may be correct.
There is something which prevents Ranil, and through him, Sirisena, from acting on the reports/matters you mention.
‘Blood is thicker than water’ and, politics, like evolution, is the ‘Survival of the fittest’.
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High Flyer / June 17, 2015
There is a saying that the things change
the more it remains the same.
True that sex starved corrupt Nishantha
Wickremesinghe and his toady Kapila
Chandrasena is out.
Who has come in ? Ajit Dias, the coffee
bean man who knows next to nothing about
airlines has taken over. Other than going
abroad many times, he is doing very little
for the betterment of the airline. In fact
he is the one who asked Kapila C. to wait
behind because Ajit is a good buddy and
business partner of Aravinda de Silva.
Ajit Dias’ only qualification – He is a close
buddy of Ranil Wickremesinghe. He will crash
land one of these days. He is never in office
and is otherwise busy. He also has a lot of
skeletons in the cupboard.
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Plato. / June 18, 2015
Jan:8th began with a bang.
It has now become a Whimper!
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Bravo Two Zero / June 18, 2015
The whole Report done by Weliamuna was a propaganda gix. Ranil W will never take action agasint the fellow Royalsist. Druvi P has already lodged and gone to meet Ravi K, to get help from Ranil W since Royalisst will never betray Royalsist, thats how Ranil W runs the government.
What a Shame !!!
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Saman Wijesiri / June 19, 2015
Ranil protected MR when he was the Prime Minister. John Amaratunga was in it because he was the Internal Security Minister at that time. It is obvious that Ranil does not want to bring to book the corrupt elements of the previous regime. I don’t think that the Weliamuna/Jayaratne report will see the light of the day.Chandra Jayaratne is an upright civil society activist. The critical comments he made regarding the Treasury Bond issue are well known and Ranil must be holding those comments against Jayaratne. Ranil is set to send to wrack and ruin the moribund UNP that got a new lease of life recently, of course, ably aided and abetted by Ravi! Ranil will yet again perform the seemingly impossible feat – snatching defeat from the jaws of victory! There can be one or two nitwits in any decision-making apex body. But how can you imagine there is a decision- making apex body in a major political party full of nitwits anywhere in the world for that matter?
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Upul Perera / June 21, 2015
You said a mouthful Saman Wijesiri. Not only helping John who is still
in cahoots with Mahinda R.
Ranil will never do anything against the Rajapaksa family. Now he is getting
more closer to MR to teach Maithri a lesson.
He is the most distrusted politician in Sri Lanka. Fortunately for him the war is over. During war time if one slept with the enemy, death was the sentence.
This man will never change. Ravi K is a countrywide acknolwedged crook looking for a deal in any business. There is Wijayadasa Rajapuksha, another of the same tribe. There is John Ameratunga.
Sagala Ratnayake, the International Affairs Expert and the only one allowed by Ranil to meet John Kerry and Malik Samarawickrema have built a wall around RW. They cannot meet him except in Parliament. The MPs are mad with RW. They call him the deal kaaraya. Now even Maitripala Sirisana is saying RW is working with MR. Do people want to elect such a Quisling as the next Prime Minister?
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