The recommendations are expected to be handed over to parliament on October 13 as the majority recommendation and the minority recommendation.

According to reliable sources the majority recommendation is that there was no discrepancy in the treasury bond issue, while the minority recommendations suggests that there were discrepancies in the treasury bond issue.

The JVP represented by CoPE Committee Chairman Sunil Handunnetti has maintained the theory that there were serious financial misappropriations that had occurred during the Treasury bond issue.

However the UNP faction of the CoPE Committee headed by Minister Lakshman Kiriella has brought forward recommendations that no financial misappropriation had occurred in the Treasury bond issue.

Auditor General’s Report

According to the Auditor General’s report however, there was a preventable loss of Rs. 1.67 billion in the Treasury bond issue.

Currently, the CoPE Committee comprises 26 Members of Parliament.

They are as follows:
Sunil Handunneththi Chairman, Rauf Hakeem, Anura Priyadarshana Yapa, Dayasiri Jayasekara, Ravindra Samaraweera, Wasantha Aluvihare, Lasantha Alagiyawanna, Harsha de Silva, Ajith P. Perera, Ranjan Ramanayake, Ashok Abeysinghe, Anura Dissanayake, Lakshman Seneviratne, Chandrasiri Gajadheera, Bimal Ratnayake, Weerakumara Dissanayake, Mavai S. Senathirajah, M. A. Sumanthiran, Hector Appuhamy, Velu Kumar, Nalinda Jayathissa, Harshana Rajakaruna, S. Sritharan and G. Srineshan, Mahindanada Aluthgamage, Abdullah Mahroof.

The Committee consists of four SLFP MP’s, 16 MP’s representing the government and 10 others representing the TNA and JO.

CoPE Committee not independent

Although the CoPE Committee is expected to take independent decisions, there is a tendency by individual party members to favour decisions taken to protect the interest of the relevant party. In the Central Bank Bond issue too this partiality is very evident, according to political critics.
However, to date the CoPE Committee recommendations have not been implemented.

The CoPE Committee has no judicial powers and the regular practice has been to hand over the investigations of the committee findings either to the Bribery Commission or the CID, once it is handed over to the Speaker.

However since the inception of the CoPE Committee in 1979 to date, no such implementation of the committee’s findings have taken place.

Problematic Situation

Political critics also point out that there is a complication with regard to accepting of the CoPE Committee recommendations as well.

Current CoPE Committee member Mahindananda Aluthgamage was taken into custody on charges of money laundering recently, inn addition he is facing many other allegations.

There is also allegation that 14 other CoPE Committee members are also facing numerous allegations.

Therefore political critics point out that impartial and accurate verdicts with regard to financial misappropriations cannot be expected from a group of persons who are also facing corruption charges.