{"id":91453,"date":"2019-07-16T15:53:26","date_gmt":"2019-07-16T22:53:26","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/?p=91453"},"modified":"2019-07-16T15:53:26","modified_gmt":"2019-07-16T22:53:26","slug":"re-discussion-had-by-chapa-with-gmoa-reps-re-import-of-outdated-medicineetc-in-june-19-corrupt-fisheries-deals","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/2019\/07\/16\/re-discussion-had-by-chapa-with-gmoa-reps-re-import-of-outdated-medicineetc-in-june-19-corrupt-fisheries-deals\/","title":{"rendered":"RE: Discussion had by Chapa with GMOA Reps re Import of Outdated Medicine,etc. in June ’19\/Corrupt Fisheries Deals"},"content":{"rendered":"

Mahinda Gunasekera<\/em><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n

His Excellency Maithripala Sirisena
President of Sri Lanka

Hon. Ranil Wickremasinghe
Prime Minister of Sri Lanka

Your Excellency Maithripala Sirisena and Hon. Ranil Wickremasinghe,<\/em><\/strong>

Please see the annexed video discussion with two representatives of the GMOA with one Chapa Bandara relating to serious wrongdoings in procedure and harm done to the health of the people through the corrupt practices of the current Minister of Health, and corrupt deals incurring huge losses to the state by the same person, namely Rajitha Senaratne, when he held the post of Minister of Fisheries.

Such corrupt activities cannot be pushed under the rug and forgotten as a colossal amount of public funds have been misappropriated and wasted under the direction of this individual who is currently the Minister of Health in your government.

Please take some positive steps to investigate the alleged wrongdoings and take appropriate action at least at the present stage to penalize those responsible for the high handed acts of corruption causing immense losses to the public purse.

Yours sincerely,

Mahinda Gunasekera
Dated: July 16, 2019<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Please watch this very interesting discussion with two GMOA representatives where they talk of importation of outdated drugs by the Ministry of Health which are outside the approved list and proven to be less effective.\u00a0 They spoke of harm done to pregnant mothers, new mothers and new born babies by providing them with outdated and less effective iron pills and folic acid, plus several other drugs at exorbitant prices.\u00a0 They quoted from the Auditor General’s Report on the wilful actions of the ministry that failed to carry three months buffer stock as required, and thereafter proceeding to bypass the normal tender process and order unknown drugs outside the approved list as an emergency measure, costing in some cases 100 times more.\u00a0 The Minister of Health and responsible officials should be taken to task for the waste of funds and serious harm done to the people’s health.\u00a0 They placed the losses to the country well above that of the Central Bank fraud.

It appears as though a Presidential Commission of Inquiry has been established to look into the irresponsible and fraudulent acts of the Minister and high officials.\u00a0 The LINK to the discussion is given below.

Nilantha Jayawardena <nilantha.jayawardena@gmail.com><\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\nhttps:\/\/youtu.be\/cdEjynbYUBs\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

<\/a> If funds are required to duly proceed with the investigation and court trial, we should willingly contribute towards the costs in order that justice may prevail.

Mahinda Gunasekera<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Rajitha Off The Hook In\nFishy Deals<\/strong>
\nPosted on May 23rd, 2016 <\/p>\n\n\n\n

by\nCamelia Nathaniel Courtesy The Sunday Leader<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

<\/a>Evidence\nhas surfaced that a prominent minister and former fisheries minister had been\nengaged in bribery and corruption during his tenure at the fisheries ministry\ndepriving the country of millions of rupees in tax revenue and depriving the\nfishing community of many opportunities.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Despite his tarnished track record, this\nminister jumped ship from the Rajapaksa camp and joined the Maithri-Ranil\nbandwagon in order to safeguard himself and avoid being taken to task over the\ncorrupt activities he had been engaged in.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

During his tenure, a Chinese firm which\nwanted to engage in fishing within Sri Lankan waters had approached the\nminister through its local arm Arugambay Fishery (Pvt) Ltd. Under the pretext\nof having further discussions on the matter, the then Fisheries Minister Dr.\nRajitha Senaratne visited China on two occasions at the expense of the Chinese\ncompany. He left Sri Lanka aboard a Sri Lankan Airlines flight on sixth June,\n2013 and returned on June 12,2013.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As a result of this visit, the minister\nlaid down conditions that the deal could go through only if the local company\nArugambay Fishery (Pvt) Ltd, would be replaced by a company that would be\ncreated with his secretary Don Lalith Anuradha Seneviratne as the major\nshareholder. Subsequently Blue Ocean Fishery (Pvt) Ltd was registered under N\/A\n176433 with his secretary Don Lalith Anuradha Seneviratne holding 60 per cent\nof shares. Misusing his privileges as a minister, Rajitha Senaratane set up\nthis company knowing full well that it was illegal and appointed his secretary\nas the major shareholder in a bid to hoodwink the people. In addition, Blue\nOcean Fishery (Pvt) Ltd, imported eight ships worth Rs. 400 million, but to\ndate there is no mention of the duty that was or was not paid to the country.\nTo date the investment of Blue Ocean Fishery (Pvt) Ltd is around Rs. 1000\nmillion and the investment of Anuradha Seneviratne would have to be around Rs.\n600 million. How a minister\u2019s secretary could invest such a colossal figure is\nstill a mystery.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

<\/a>According to the agreement\nbetween Blue Ocean Fishery (Pvt) Ltd and the fisheries ministry, 10 per cent of\nthe catch of the eight vessels should be sold to the fisheries ministry at $ 1\nper kilo, before the rest can be exported.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Chinese company was earlier granted\npermission to engage in fishing under the Sri Lankan flag beyond the exclusive\neconomic zone (EEZ) of Sri Lanka. The company had entered into an agreement\nwith the Board of Investment to carry out fishing in international waters.\nAccording to an official of the Ministry of Investment Promotion, although the\nDikovita Port was constructed as the biggest port in Asia, it was the\nminister\u2019s son who got the contractors and handled the construction and the\nexpenditure incurred for the construction of this port should be investigated\nseparately.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

However although the previous regime and\nMinister Senaratne claimed that this was the biggest port in Asia, the depth of\nit is just 5 metres.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Let alone accommodating large commercial\nvessels, even the Chinese trawlers could not be berthed there as it was not\ndeep enough.Under the agreement, 90 per cent of the catch would be exported to\nChina and 10 per cent given to the fisheries corporation at one dollar a\nkilo, the official said. The Chinese vessels were to be docked at the Dikovita\nfisheries harbour where the processing for exports would be carried out.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The operation was expected to\ngenerate  US$ 11 million (Rs. 1.3 billion)  in the first year.\nAccording to the official, the company started operations with four vessels and\nthereafter deployed 16 more 150 ft vessels.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

However in spite of the profits made by\nthis company, the minister had used his powers and obtained nine years of tax\nexemption for Blue Ocean Fishery (Pvt) Ltd. Moreover there is no declaration as\nto how this company obtained the funds to start up this investment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This company has also not made any payment\nto the fisheries harbour corporation for the use of the Colombo or Dokovita\nharbours. Further, it is leant that in spite of a clause that has been inserted\nto the agreement with the cunning intention of obtaining tax concessions, that\n10 per cent of the catch of these vessels will be sold to the Fisheries\nCorporation at $ 1 per kilo, this company had not supplied any fish to the\nfisheries corporation. This corrupt minister also used his powers in order to\nsilence any official who dared to raise this issue.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

According to the official, unsuitable appointments\nwere made during the minister\u2019s tenure further aggravating the situation at the\nfisheries corporation and contributed to its ruin.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

According to fisheries ministry sources,\nDuring Senaratne\u2019s tenure as the Minister of Fisheries, the younger brother of\nRajitha Senaratne, Mahil Senaratne was appointed as the chairman of the\nfisheries corporation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At the time Mahil Senaratne was\nappointed as chairman, he did not even own a house, but shortly after, he had\nconstructed a luxury house in Nugegoda and also purchased a BMW motor vehicle.\nWorkers claim that this was due to the fact that he was importing fish to the\ncountry at high commissions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He was said to be receiving commissions\nfrom everything that was purchased for the fisheries corporation including the\nshopping bags that were used.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

They claim that having worked as a store\nkeeper at Bata, Mahil Senaratne had no knowledge on how to run the fisheries\ncorporation and as a result the institution was ruined.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The workers also claim that a former police\nofficer Ruwan Lankeshwara was appointed as the managing director and he too\njoined the minister and his brother in destroying the fisheries corporation.\nHundreds of thousands of rupees were also taken claiming that the money was for\nthe minister\u2019s bodhi poojas. Further the workers claim that during the period\nunder Minister Rajitha, the staff of the fisheries department was set at 745,\nof which 600 were permanent employees. However the workers charge that Rajitha\nSenaratne and his group had recruited a further 700 workers on contract basis\nand this had put a huge strain on the institution. In addition these workers\nwere obliged to agree and cater to all the demands of the management.The\nworkers also charge that around 20 kilos of small fish had to be delivered to\nMinister Senaratne\u2019s residence supposedly to feed the dogs and cats. There were\nno bills or payments for this. According to the regulations of the fisheries\ndepartment all goods purchased should be done after calling for tenders. But in\nspite of these regulations, the minister and his group had purchased used\nfurniture and utensils for the main office from a hotel in Beruwela and these\nitems were subsequently discarded due to being unusable.  Part of these\nitems have also ended up at the residence of the chairman, managing director\nand the trade union president, it is alleged.Meanwhile, the cleaning contract\nfor the Peliyagoda Fish Market at the time was given to one of Senaratne\u2019s\nfriends, one Kabir from the Minuwangoda without following any tender procedure.\nThe contract was granted at Rs. 1.5 million monthly and of this, around Rs.\n500,000 was the minister\u2019s commission.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In addition, the manufacturing of life\njackets was also given to another friend of the minister. The workers also\nclaimed that in addition to their wages, special allowances ranging from Rs.\n5000 to 25,000 were paid as allowances to the management friends of the\nminister. Moreover while practically all ice machine plants were in a\ndilapidated state, these too were sold as scrap metal with commissions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Further, former Chairman of the Ceylon\nFisheries Corporation branch in the SLFP affiliated Nidahas Sevaka Sangamaya,\nT.W. K. Dhammika who was accused of fraud of 2.8 million of NSS funds,\nimprisoned and later released on bail, was then reinstated by the minister\nwithout any proper investigation regarding the fraud.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

While many crooks of the previous regime\nare being carted before commissions of inquiry and the bribery commission,\nthose such as Rajitha Senaratne have cleverly switched allegiances and managed\nto avoid these investigations. According to the former president himself,\nSenaratne had made billions together with the Chinese and they too were unable\nto do anything about it because of their close relations with China. The\nJVP had filed a complaint at the Bribery Commission through the fisheries\nministry regarding the misdeeds of Minister Senaratne, but since the minister\nhas now switched sides and joined the Good Governance regime, so far no action\nhas been taken. Voice Against Corruption (VOC) Convener and JVP North Central\nProvincial Councilor Wasantha Samarasinghe who was instrumental in filing this\ncomplaint said that as far as he knew no action was taken against the minister.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When contacted by The Sunday Leader\nMinister Rajitha Senaratne refuting these allegations said that although there\nhad been a complaint that had been lodged against him at the Bribery\ncommission, so far he had not been called for any investigation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This is done by Wimal Weerawansa\u2019s people\nand although I heard about it, so far I have not been informed of any\ninvestigation that has been initiated.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

With regard to the allegations that then\nminister had engaged Chinese vessels illegally to fish in local waters he said\nit is not only the Chinese but Japanese vessels were also used. If we had not\nmet our target of 362 metric tons we would have lost our quota.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The EU is taking 52% while the other states\nonly take 48%, but no one is talking about that,\u201d said the minister.He further\nsaid that it was only a temporary measure and in order to meet the quota, we\nneed to have larger vessels. Pointing to Thailand as an example the minister\nsaid that they had engaged around 100 foreign vessels, and we would need to\nconsider that option in the future too. The minister also said that this is not\nbeing highlighted by the media and it was not something that could be\nunderstood by everyone.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This is something to do with international\naffairs and ordinary people don\u2019t understand this situation,\u201d added minister\nSenaratne.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Mahinda Gunasekera His Excellency Maithripala Sirisena President of Sri Lanka Hon. Ranil Wickremasinghe Prime Minister of Sri Lanka Your Excellency Maithripala Sirisena and Hon. Ranil Wickremasinghe, Please see the annexed video discussion with two representatives of the GMOA with one Chapa Bandara relating to serious wrongdoings in procedure and harm done to the health of […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":true,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-91453","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-politics"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/91453","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=91453"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/91453\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=91453"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=91453"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=91453"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}