Treasury Secretary to appear before COPF today

The Secretary to the Treasury Dr. Harshana Suriyapperuma is scheduled to appear before the Committee on Public Finance (COPF) at 1.00 p.m. today (30).

Following summons issued by the Committee on Public Finance (COPF) to examine the alleged misplacement of USD 2.5 million, Treasury Secretary Harshana Suriyapperuma, along with several senior officials of the Ministry of Finance, is scheduled to appear before the committee today.

Treasury Secretary Dr. Harshana Suriyapperuma, yesterday (29), had informed the COPF in a letter that he will not appear before the committee today, according to COPF Chairman Dr Harsha de Silva.

De Silva stated that the relevant letter was received by the Committee yesterday.

The Parliamentary Committee on Public Finance convened on April 28 to discuss the alleged incident involving USD 2.5 million in funds obtained by cybercriminals who breached a computer system at the Ministry of Finance.  

Accordingly, it was decided at the meeting to summon a group of senior officials of the Ministry of Finance, including the Secretary to the Treasury Dr. Harshana Suriyapperuma, to appear before the COPF, which is scheduled to be chaired by Dr. Harsha de Silva today.

Cabinet Spokesman Nalinda Jayatissa had recently stated that the payment, made as part of a debt settlement linked to a USD 22.9 million loan, had not reached its intended recipient and had instead been diverted and that investigations are currently ongoing.