2022-11-23
News Categories : Committee News
The proposed Anti-Corruption Bill to be submitted to Parliament, inclusive of the establishment of an Independent Commission of Inquiry on Bribery and Corruption which is accountable to Parliament was looked into at the Ministerial Consultative Committee on Justice, Prison Affairs and Constitutional Reforms recently (Nov. 21).
This was taken into discussion at the Ministerial Consultative Committee on Justice, Prison Affairs and Constitutional Reforms under the chairmanship of the Minister of Justice, Prisons Affairs and Constitutional Reforms Hon. (Dr.) Wijeyadasa Rajapakshe, PC.
The Minister mentioned that all the allegations of bribery and corruption in the country are being leveled at the parliamentarians representing the Parliament due to the failure to create a formal institutional structure and provide the necessary powers to prevent bribery, corruption and fraud.
Mr. Sarath Jayamanna, PC explained to the committee about the proposed Anti-Corruption Bill. He stated that the proposed Bribery or Corruption Investigation Commission will be accountable to Parliament and that the Commission shall submit its progress report to Parliament every three months.
The Bill also proposes to appoint persons with more than 20 years of experience in the fields of law, forensic audit, accounting, engineering, international relations and diplomatic service, public administration as commissioners of the commission. Commissioners are appointed by the President on the recommendation of the Constitutional Council. Furthermore, the allocation of money for this commission should be done directly through Parliament, Mr. Sarath Jayamanna said.
Additionally, the draft has proposed to establish a separate board of directors to receive asset liability statements and deal with related issues. According to the Bill, it was stated that the relevant minister has the ability to make regulations regarding obtaining asset and liability statements of individuals in areas where corruption and bribery occur more, excluding executive officers of the public sector. Mr. Jayamanna also said that since important government departments are connected with this office through the internet, inquiries about assets and liabilities can be made easily.
It was discussed that it includes provisions to prevent bribery and corruption in the private sector, sports sector, etc not only exclusive to the public sector. The Committee also emphasized the need to give severe punishments to those found guilty in the investigation of bribery scams.
The minister also said that he is expected to discuss the proposed Bill in a more democratic manner and make appropriate amendments.
The Minister also briefed the committee on the “The Recovery of Possession of the Premises given on Lease (Special Provisions) Bill to be passed in Parliament. The minister pointed out that the main objective of this enactment is to reduce the laws delay in any ordinary rent and ejectment action in regular procedure and to grant relives to the lessor in very short period.
This Bill introduces a swift and efficient process and an ejectment of overholding lessees who are in occupation if premises in relation to duly executed notaria lease agreements.
Furthermore, the Order published in Extraordinary Gazette No. 2301/33 dated October 12, 2022 enacted by the Minister of Justice under the Mutual Cooperation in Criminal Matters Act No. 25 of 2022 was also considered and approved.
Minister Hon. Naseer Ahmed, State Ministers Hon. Chamara Sampath Dasanayake, Hon. Kader Mastan, Hon. D. B. Herath, Members of Parliament Hon. Rauff Hakeem, hon. Anura Priyadarshana Yapa, Hon. Jagath Kumara Sumithraarachchi, Hon. D. Weerasingha, Hon. Upul Mahendra Rajapakse, Hon. M. S. Thowfeek and Hon. Gevindu Cumaratunga was present at this meeting held.
Furthermore, the Secretary General of the Parliament Mr. Dhammika Dasanayake and a government officials from several institutions including the Ministry of Justice, the Attorney General's Department also participated in this meeting.
2026-06-19
The Ministerial Consultative Committee on Environment focused its attention on the issue of water pollution in the Kelani River when it met in Parliament recently (10th June) under the chairmanship of the Hon. Minister of Environment, Dr. Dammika Patabendi.During the meeting, the Committee was briefed on the progress of discussions being held with companies that have expressed willingness to invest in a project aimed at cleaning the waters of the Kelani River.The Committee also discussed a number of proposals and other issues raised by Hon. Members of Parliament.The meeting was attended by Hon. Members of Parliament and officials.
2026-06-18
A meeting of the Women Parliamentarians Caucus was held in Parliament recently to discuss the importance of incorporating Gender-Responsive Budgeting into Sri Lanka’s national budget formulation process and to examine the challenges associated with its implementation.The meeting was chaired by the Chairperson of the Caucus and Hon. Minister of Women and Child Affairs, Saroja Savithri Paulraj. Hon. Prime Minister Dr. Harini Amarasuriya also participated in the discussion.A key concern raised during the discussion was the lack of adequate data and indicators to accurately assess and measure women’s economic contributions within the budgetary process. Drawing on examples of approaches adopted in India and other countries, members of the Caucus underscored the need to identify and address existing systemic and technical gaps in Sri Lanka’s budgeting framework.The Caucus also emphasized the importance of disaggregating data by gender in project reporting and strengthening digital data management systems to support such efforts. It was further noted that identifying relevant gender-related considerations at the initial stages of project design and implementation at the ministerial level would facilitate more effective project analysis, monitoring, and evaluation of outcomes.The need to move away from existing traditional and time-consuming methods towards formal online systems and data-driven analytical tools was also emphasized.The current progress and challenges in integrating Gender-Responsive Budgeting into Sri Lanka’s public financial policy were discussed in detail during the meeting.It was also emphasized that such budgeting should not be limited to nominal percentages in documents, but that the need to establish a formal framework and data system to ensure it has a real and practical impact was also highlighted.The Hon.Deputy Chairperson of Committees Hemalee Weerasekera, Hon. Deputy Minister Dr. Kaushalya Ariyarathne, Co-Vice Chairpersons of the Caucus, Hon. Members of Parliament Chamindrani Kiriella, Attorney at Law and Samanmalee Gunasinghe, Hon. Members of Parliament Thushari Jayasinghe, Attorney at Law, Krishnan Kaleichelvi, Sagarika Athauda ,Attorney at Law, Nilanthi Kottahachchi, Attorney at Law, Ambika Samivel and Lakmali Hemachandra, Attorney at Law, along with a group of officials from the Ministry of Finance, Planning and Economic Development, also participated in the event.
2026-06-17
The Ministerial Consultative Committee on Public Administration, Provincial Councils and Local Government met recently (Jun. 12) at Parliament under the chairmanship of the Hon. Minister of Public Administration, Provincial Councils and Local Government, Prof. A.H.M.H. Abayarathna.During the meeting, Members of Parliament discussed a range of issues and proposals relating to their respective electorates, as well as several other matters of public importance.Hon. Members of Parliament and officials were present at the meeting.
2026-06-17
The Ministerial Consultative Committee on Buddhasasana, Religious and Cultural Affairs met recently (Jun. 09) at Parliament under the chairmanship of the Hon. Minister of Buddhasasana, Religious and Cultural Affairs, Dr. Hiniduma Sunil Senevi.During the meeting, Members of Parliament discussed a number of proposals and issues, including reviewing the progress of discussions initiated with the Ministry of Education, Higher Education and Vocational Education and the Department of Examinations regarding the formulation of regulations to prevent the conduct of private tuition classes on Sunday mornings, thereby facilitating the holding of Dhamma School classes on Sundays.The meeting was attended by Hon. Deputy Ministers, Hon. Members of Parliament and officials.
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