A special awareness workshop was held in Parliament for the heads of 457 state institutions that fall under the oversight of the Committee on Public Enterprises (COPE).
Around 700 individuals, including chairpersons, director generals, chief executive officers, or other senior officials from these institutions, were invited in three groups to participate in the workshop, the Parliament Secretariat said.
This program was held on Thursday (02) under the patronage of Dr. Nishantha Samaraweera, Member of Parliament and Chairman of the COPE. Key speakers included Acting Auditor General G.H.D. Dharmapala; Director of the Department of Public Enterprises, K.V.C. Dilrukshi; Director of the National Budget Department, K.S.M. de Silva; Director of the Department of Management Services, M.A. Karunaratne; and R.K. Jayalath.
Speaking at the event, the COPE Chairman Dr. Nishantha Samaraweera pointed out that the heads of institutions as well as the COPE have the responsibility to change the public perception of public enterprises as well as the COPE.
Accordingly, the awareness and discussions gained through this workshop mark a new beginning, and avoiding past shortcomings to guide these institutions in the right direction is the expectation of all, said the COPE Chairman.
The COPE Chairman also stated that this is the first time in history that such an awareness was organized by calling all the heads of institutions under the COPE at once.
Dr. Samaraweera highlighted the need to avoid fundamental weaknesses such as situations where existing laws are not followed, legal provisions are misinterpreted, or outdated regulations are applied without amendment. He also emphasized the need to update the Act as soon as possible if there are outdated sections to make them relevant to the present.
The Committee Chairman said that it is not the intention of his committee to summon officials before the Committee, question them or expose them as guilty. He said that there is no obstacle to working creatively within the limits without any fear and that some are trying to create false opinions that decisions cannot be taken. He also emphasized the need to strengthen internal audit.
The COPE Chairman stated that steps have been taken to amend the Standing Orders to direct legal action to be taken against corruption and frauds revealed in the COPE.
Since it is not possible to summon every institution within a period of one year, the COPE Chairman further said that a new mechanism will be implemented to monitor the functioning of these 457 institutions every year. He also stated that the order of institutions to be summoned to the COPE in the future will be determined according to a scientific methodology, the statement added.
The Acting Auditor General explained the role of the National Audit Office to ensure transparency and accountability. The heads of institutions were also informed about the correct implementation of the corporate plan, action plan, institutional structures, annual reports, board of directors’ activities, budget management, employee recruitment and filling of vacancies, etc.
The heads of institutions also had the opportunity to present practical issues and proposals for the attention of the Committee and the COPE Chairman informed the heads to convey their suggestions and ideas to the Committee in writing.
It was also revealed that more workshops are expected to be organized in the future to educate the legal officers and other officers of these institutions.
COPE members, Members of Parliament Dayasiri Jayasekara, Asitha Niroshana Egoda Withana, Chandima Hettiarchchi, Assistant Secretary General of Parliament Mr. Hansa Abeyratne, Director of Legislative Services and Director of Communications (Acting) of Parliament Mr. M. Jayalath Perera, former Auditor General and COPE and COPA Advisor Mr. S.C. Mayadunne and former High Court Judge and COPE Advisor Mr. Piyasena Ranasinghe also participated in this event.
