The current administration of Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) has refuted reports of any form of connections with Committee on Public Enterprises (COPE) Chairman Prof. Ranjith Bandara.
Issuing a statement, the SLC said that the former administration led by Thilanga Sumathipala had entered into an agreement with the Colombo School of Business and Management which was headed by Prof. Ranjith Bandara for a consultancy role.
The SLC said the Colombo School of Business and Management had provided its services to the former SLC administration from 2017 to May 2018 for which the company was paid for its services.
Stating that the private firm was only remunerated for its consultancy services, the SLC said that no other payments were made outside of the agreement to the firm or Prof. Ranjith Bandara.
Raising the matter in Parliament today, the Opposition Leader MP Sajith Premadasa questioned if Prof. Ranjith Bandara should be allowed to remain as the Chairman of the COPE Committee investigating issues pertaining to the SLC, as it was a clear conflict of interest.
Stating that this was a serious issue, MP Premadasa said Prof. Ranjith Bandara’s position as COPE Chairman is questionable as he had failed to report his former affiliations with the SLC and has also been found to be functioning in the role despite a conflict of interest.
Meanwhile, the Opposition Leader also raised the matter of COPE Chairman Prof. Ranjith Bandara’s son Kanishka Bandara participating in the recent COPE meeting with Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC).
MP Premadasa questioned how the son of an MP was allowed to sit at a COPE meeting, while restrictions had been imposed on him, the Opposition Leader, by the COPE Chairman during a previous meeting.
Responding to the claims, Speaker Mahinda Yapa Abeywardena said an investigation will be carried out over the participation of Kanishka Bandara at the recent COPE meeting with the SLC.
Addressing the Parliament, Speaker Mahinda Yapa Abeywardena acknowledged that no outsider is allowed to participate in COPE meetings.
He further said that Kanishka Bandara was allowed to participate as he had informed the Parliament authorities that he was the media secretary of COPE Chairman Prof. Ranjith Bandara.
Speaker Mahinda Yapa Abeywardena added that an investigation will be conducted into the incident. (NewsWire)
