The Hon. Mujibur Rahman

¶ 01 Hon. Deputy Chairperson of Committees, remember this: He spoke about the 309 containers and laughed it off. Then why not release the report on the 309 containers? Why not table it in Parliament? Why not allow us to see it transparently? Of those 309 containers, why were 150 red-labelled containers released? He said this happened before as well. It is precisely because it happened before that you were brought to power—to change past wrongs, not to repeat them. Accept that you have not changed and are doing the same things.

¶ 02 Last Saturday, six containers were released. Let me highlight this: A Gazette dated June 10 states that the last date for loading salt for import onto a vessel must be June 10, 2025, or before. Now 400 containers are stuck at the port because their vessel loading dates are listed as June 11 and 12 in the ship’s manifest. However, six of those containers—loaded on June 11—have been released. Why? Because they belong to a friend of the President or a Minister?

¶ 03 How were those six containers released? I have the list of 68 container numbers. I table that list.

¶ 04 While all other traders’ containers remain held at the port, six containers of a major salt trader were released, even though those containers arrived on the same vessel as the others.

¶ 05 Further, the President spoke of corruption. We raised the issue of wind power plants. A previously rejected 50 MW wind power tender was awarded to the President’s associate. Members of that associate’s company now hold chairmanships of various state entities—from SriLankan Airlines onwards. They now run this country. Of the 309 released containers, nearly 70 percent belonged to that associate’s company. That is why the list is not being released. If not, table it.

¶ 06 The VFS deal during the previous Government was a greater scandal than the Central Bank bond scam. When this Government came to power, Minister Wijitha Herath said they would conduct a forensic audit. Nine months have passed. Why is the VFS deal not being investigated? Why not the passport deal? I challenge you: investigate the VFS and passport deals and reveal the truth. But you will not.