Complaint about PA bribing UNP parliamentarian

[TamilNet, Thursday, 17 August 2000, 19:07 GMT]
A complaint has been lodged with the Bribery and Corruption Commission requesting a full investigation in to a 1.5 million rupee bribe said to have been offered to a United National Party (UNP) parliamentarian by a ruling People's Alliance (PA) MP as an inducement to vote in favour of the new constitution bill.

Kumaradasa Kiribabu, a media personnel, has made this complaint based on statements made by Mr.Ranil Wickremasinghe, UNP leader and Chief Whip W.J.M.Loku Bandara that a UNP parliamentarian was given 1.5 million rupees as bribe by a PA MP to vote in favour of Constitution Reforms Bill in parliament.

It is a serious offence for a lawmaker elected by the people to be involved in receiving bribe. Mr.Kiribabu has told the Bribery and Corruption Commission that he was making this complaint on behalf of the people.

Many UNP parliamentarians were alleged to have been offered bribes running into millions of rupees to vote in favour of the new constitution bill.

Rebel Parliamentarian Vasudeva Nanayakkara openly alleged that he was offered a bribe to vote in favour the new constitution bill.

The Leader of Opposition said at a press conference and confirmed later by the UNP"s Chief Whip Loku Bandara that a member of the Peoples' Alliance offered a bribe of 1.5 million rupees to one MP of the UNP which he accepted and he later shared it with the other members of the UNP, to enjoy it all abroad.

The MP who accepted the bribe is kept secret by the UNP.

The media personnel who made the complaint to the Bribery and Corruption Commission is said to be a pro-government supporter.The state-run Sri Lanka Broadcasting Corporation today gave wide publicity to this news.

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