PCoI Probe on SriLankan Airlines MR’s Affidavit to be filed next Friday

By Yoshitha Perera 

Former President Mahinda Rajapaksa’s affidavit will be filed to the Presidential Commission of Inquiry (PCoI) into irregularities at SriLankan Airlines, SriLankan Catering and Mihin Lanka next Friday, the Commission said.   

During yesterday’s proceedings PCoI Secretary Ariyadasa Cooray had submitted several affidavits on key witnesses who had provided their statements to the Police unit attached to the Commission.   
The Secretary had submitted the affidavit of former SriLankan Airlines Chairman Nishantha Wickramasinghe and the documents related to his affidavit. It was also reported that the Commission had sent almost 182 questions to the former Chairman and he had provided answers to certain questions.   

Throughout the proceeding it was identified that there were some errors in numbering the pages of Mr. Wickramasinghe’s affidavit.   

Mr. Cooray also submitted the affidavits of Secretary to the Ministry of Power Dr. Suren Batagoda, former Consultant of the SriLankan Lalith de Silva and former Ambassador to UK Chris Nonis.   

Even though it had earlier reported that the PCoI had planned to call upon number of key players of Mihin and SriLankan during the extension but due to the limited time the Commission had planned to submit the affidavits of key witnesses to conclude the open inquiry sessions by end of June.   

Earlier, Minister of Power, Energy and Business Development, Ravi Karunanayake and Minister of Highways, Road Development and Petroleum Resources Development, Kabir Hashim were questioned by the CID unit attached to the PCoI in February.   

In August last year Defence Secretary and founding Director of Mihin Lanka, Gotabaya Rajapaksa, former Secretary to the former President Rajapaksa, Lalith Weeratunga, former Secretary to the Treasury Dr. P.B. Jayasundara and former CEO of Mihin Lanka, Sajin de Vaas Gunawardena also provided similar statements to the Police Unit which is attached to the Commission.   
Also former Chairmen of SriLankan Airlines Ajith Dias, Nishantha Wickramasinghe, former CEO of SriLankan Kapila Chandrasena and former Sri Lankan High Commissioner to the UK and former Director of SriLankan had provided their statements to the Police unit in August last year.