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.
2026-07-22
The draft Terms of Reference (ToR) prepared for the Parliamentary Caucus for Open Parliament Initiative was approved recently at a meeting held in Parliament with the participation of Parliament's development partner organizations.The approval was granted during a meeting of the Caucus chaired by its Co-Chair, Hon. Member of Parliament Shanakkiyan Rajaputhiran Rasamanickam.The draft Terms of Reference was developed based on proposals and recommendations received during a workshop organized by the Caucus in recent months to gather stakeholder input for its preparation.The meeting also agreed that, following the approval of the Terms of Reference, the document would be submitted to Hon. President, and that a discussion would be held with the President on behalf of the Caucus.
2026-07-22
The Sub-Committee appointed by the Committee on Public Enterprises (COPE) focused its attention on the methodology, implementation timeline and coordination arrangements relating to the research study proposed for the restructuring of the Sri Lanka Institute of Advanced Technological Education (SLIATE), when it met recently, at Parliament under the Chairmanship of Hon. Member of Parliament Ruwan Mapalagama.During the meeting, discussions were held on the establishment of the proposed Institutional Operations Committee and a six-member Coordination Team to facilitate the implementation of the research. Attention was also focused on the proposed Mixed-Methods Design, the preparation of questionnaires and the data collection process.The Sub-Committee further reviewed the progress of obtaining public views on the restructuring of SLIATE. Matters relating to obtaining the contribution of the Human Resources and Management Information Systems (MIS) divisions for the research, the preparation of the research implementation timeline through a Gantt Chart, and the stakeholder consultations to be held with representatives of the industry sector were also considered.The programme to obtain the views of stakeholders, including Chambers of Commerce, industry associations and professional bodies, as well as the conduct of field visits to selected SLIATE institutions across the country, was also discussed.The Sub-Committee decided to proceed with the future activities of the research in accordance with the agreed timeline and to present the relevant progress reports at its next meeting.Hon. Member of Parliament Lieutenant Commander (Retired) Prageeth Madhuranga also attended the meeting.
2026-07-22
The Committee on Public Enterprises (COPE) focused its attention on referring the matters revealed in relation to land misuse, financial irregularities and administrative deficiencies at the National Housing Development Authority (NHDA) to the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) and the Commission to Investigate Allegations of Bribery or Corruption (CIABOC) for a formal investigation.The matter was taken up when the Committee met recently at Parliament under the Chairmanship of Hon. Member of Parliament (Dr.) Nishantha Samaraweera to continue its examination of the Auditor General's Reports for the years 2022 and 2023 and to consider the remaining matters relating to the current performance of the National Housing Development Authority.During the meeting, lengthy discussions were held regarding the leasing of valuable NHDA-owned lands located at Maligawatta, Elvitigala Mawatha and Rangirigama, Dambulla to external parties at low nominal values without Cabinet approval, the use of such lands for purposes contrary to the conditions stipulated in the relevant agreements, and the failure to adequately safeguard the Authority's assets.The Committee observed that many of these transactions had been carried out in contravention of the objectives of the National Housing Development Authority and the relevant legal provisions. Accordingly, the Committee recommended that comprehensive reports on the identified irregularities be referred to the Criminal Investigation Department and the Commission to Investigate Allegations of Bribery or Corruption for the institution of appropriate legal action.The Committee also instructed the officials to expedite internal audit investigations into these matters, identify the officers responsible and initiate disciplinary action against them. Furthermore, the Committee recommended that the necessary measures be taken to strengthen asset management and internal control systems in order to prevent the recurrence of such irregularities in the future.The meeting was attended by Hon. Members of Parliament Attorney-at-Law Dayasiri Jayasekara, S.M. Marikkar, Attorney-at-Law Sujeewa Senasinghe, Mujibur Rahman, Chaminda Wijesiri, Dr. S. Sri Bavanandarajah, Sunil Rajapaksha, Thilina Samarakoon, Chandima Hettiarachchi, Asitha Niroshana Egodavithana, Ruwan Mapalagama, Jagath Manuwarna, Dinesh Hemantha, M.K.M. Aslam and Sudath Balagalla.
2026-07-21
Discussions focus on strengthening disability-inclusive legislation and policy implementationThe Parliamentary Caucus for Persons with Disabilities held discussions with the United Nations Resident Coordinator and representatives of several United Nations agencies at Parliament with a view to strengthening cooperation in promoting the rights of persons with disabilities and advancing disability-inclusive legislation and policies in Sri Lanka.The meeting was held in Parliament under the Chairmanship of the Chair of the Parliamentary Caucus for Persons with Disabilities, Hon. Member of Parliament Sugath Wasantha de Silva recently.Addressing the meeting, the United Nations Resident Coordinator, Mr. Marc-André Franche, commended the Parliament for establishing the Parliamentary Caucus for Persons with Disabilities and emphasized the importance of treating disability inclusion as a national priority across all sectors. He reaffirmed the commitment of the United Nations to provide technical expertise and institutional support in areas including legislative reforms, accessibility, inclusive education, employment, community-based rehabilitation and strengthening national coordination.The UNICEF Representative, Ms. Begoña Arellano, highlighted the need to safeguard the rights of children with disabilities, particularly in relation to health, nutrition and education, while emphasizing the important oversight role of Parliament in ensuring the effective implementation of disability-inclusive policies.Representatives of UNFPA, UNDP, ILO and UN Volunteers also briefed the Caucus on ongoing initiatives relating to youth, education, disability data collection, employment opportunities and social inclusion.During the meeting, the Minister of Rural Development, Social Security and Community Empowerment, Hon. (Dr.) Upali Pannilage, informed the Caucus that the proposed Rights of Persons with Disabilities Bill and the Sign Language Bill are currently with the Attorney General's Department and are expected to be presented to Parliament on September 2026. He further stated that measures are underway to improve accessibility in public institutions, expand employment opportunities, introduce educational grants for university students with disabilities and establish ten day-care centres for children with disabilities within this year.The Caucus also discussed future initiatives, including the preparation of disability-inclusive budget proposals by Government Ministries, the finalisation of a national disability database and the conduct of a sensitisation programme for journalists to promote a rights-based approach to disability related reporting.The meeting concluded with the Chair, Hon. Sugath Wasantha de Silva, reiterating the Caucus's core theme, "An unhindered social life," and calling for continued, unified collaboration to make an inclusive society a reality.The meeting was attended by the Deputy Co-Chairs of the Caucus, Hon. Gayantha Karunathilleka, and Hon. (Dr.) Pathmanathan Sathiyalingam, the Minister of Rural Development, Social Security and Community Empowerment, Hon. (Dr.) Upali Pannilage, Members of Parliament and representatives of the United Nations Resident Coordinator's Office, UNFPA, UNICEF, UNDP, ILO and UN Volunteers.
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