Hon. Dharmapriya Wijesinghe

¶ 01 Hon. Presiding Member, today we debate the Fourth Report of the Committee on Public Enterprises (COPE). Some Opposition Members, instead of focusing on the report, chose to raise unrelated issues and insinuations—among them Hon. Harsha de Silva, who presented certain concerns based on events and conjecture. Hon. Harsha de Silva, please do not worry. From the President to the Cabinet and the Government, no one intends to pursue any improper course of action. We will do what must be done, properly. Please allow a little time, and you will see the outcome.

¶ 02 Regarding COPE—commonly known by all as “COPE”—after we assumed office in the 10th Parliament, the Chairmanship of COPE was held by a Member of the ruling party for a reason. Our nation has suffered due to the way it was governed—especially economic mismanagement and a toxic political culture. The people mandated this Government, including 159 Members in this House, expecting change.

¶ 03 Historically, COPE examined accounts of designated institutions, tabled a report in Parliament, had it approved or made public, and that was the end of it. During Hon. Sunil Handunnetti’s tenure as Chair in the past, there were attempts to go further, including actions at ministerial level. Today, we are going beyond that stage.

¶ 04 With this debate, we are strategically transforming COPE. Beyond submitting reports, if within an inquiry COPE reasonably detects fraud or corruption, COPE will refer matters to the Commission to Investigate Allegations of Bribery or Corruption or to the Inspector-General of Police. We are making COPE a committee endowed with consequential referral authority.

¶ 05 We promised a “Prosperous Country – Beautiful Life.” To achieve that, we are deploying COPE and COPA to drive accountability. We have summoned 14 institutions so far and tabled four reports. We found it very difficult to obtain information from institutions and officials, partly because past political masters pushed wrongdoing onto officials, leaving officials afraid to disclose. We must move beyond merely exposing officials and identify the political decision-makers behind them. Hence, we have amended Standing Orders to expand COPE’s powers and enable appropriate referrals.

¶ 06 As COPE exposes wrongdoing, some persons implicated quietly approach us, pleading not to be punished and asking to be allowed to retain their positions. Former political leaders and former chairmen who know the thefts have also privately spoken, but within formal inquiries it is hard to place those details on record. Therefore, we have expanded COPE’s remit so that investigations uncover corrupt acts and ensure justice for the country. Thank you for the time, Hon. Presiding Member.