The Hon. Chaminda Wijesiri

¶ 01 Madam Presiding Member, thank you for the three minutes.

¶ 02 A Government MP said issuing the tender document with a USD 20 shortfall and letting it be paid later was not an issue. Under procurement law, if “registered company” is required in the tender, you must produce that registration before submitting. You cannot say, “Pay USD 20 later and we will accept now.” The Auditor General’s Department notes exactly this — lack of registration — and questions on what basis acceptance was allowed.

¶ 03 From the Special Audit Report titled “Procurement of Coal for the Lakvijaya Power Plant by Lanka Coal Company and Coal Procurement for the 2025/2026 Season,” page 102, section 6.1.3, it states that by not affording the same opportunity to other capable suppliers who could have registered, the principle of fairness in procurement was violated.

¶ 04 You gave it secretly — a BOB. We can debate governments, but all governments’ corruption is unearthed by the National Audit Office. If you call this a theft, bring the facts. At COPE yesterday, the Ministry Secretary accepted this report. Therefore, do not attempt to whitewash; instead, ask the Minister to resign to preserve the dignity of those who voted for you. Otherwise, you become not a camp that catches thieves but that eats with thieves.

¶ 05 To Hon. Sujeewa Senasinghe: for years some said they “saved the country,” now they say others “ate the country.” The people will judge soon enough who looted and made them destitute. Thank you.