Labour field officer in bribery net

Sandasen Marasinghe

COLOMBO:The Commission to Investigate Allegations of Bribery and Corruption filed a case before the Colombo High Court against a Labour Field Officer for taking bribe.

The Bribery Commission filed the case against H.P. Kumara Senadeera of Wedamulla, Kelaniya for demanding and accepting a bribe of Rs. 35,000 at Negombo on November 11, 2005 to drop the legal action against P.A. Karunasena for not paying the Employees Provident Fund for his employees.

Karunasena of Bandarawatta (31) of Seeduwa in his statement to the Bribery Commission said that he ran a furniture shop at the said address.

One day when he was away from his shop an officer from the Labour Office in Negombo had come there and noted down the names of two employees.

The Labour Field Officer informed Karunasena to meet him at the Negombo Labour office. Once Karunasena went there Senadeera had demanded Rs 50,000 from him and later agreed to settle for Rs 35,000. He informed about the incident to the Bribery Commission. Karunasena also informed that the two employees Sisira Kumara and Lal were from Balangoda, his native village.

They had been working for him for four months and were paid on a daily basis.

They did not work for him continuously. Apart from them he also had two others working on a daily paid basis. His younger brother too worked as an employee. He said when he started the business he worked all alone.