Country lost Rs. 16 billion:

UNF sold CB gold for a song

Chaminda PERERA

Media Minister Lakshaman Yapa Abeywardena yesterday said Opposition Leader Ranil Wickremesinghe should take the responsibility for selling over 200,000 troy ounces belonging to the Central Bank of Sri Lanka to his friends at US$ 300 per ounce between 2002 - 2003 during the UNF regime.

Addressing a press briefing at the Media Ministry yesterday, the Minister said that he (Ranil Wickremesinghe) should take the responsibility for selling this consignment of gold to his friends at US$ 300 per troy ounce whereas its actual value was US$ 1,000.

“He had incurred a loss of US$ 140 million or Rs. 16 billion to the Government’s coffers by this deal and his ruse is to cover up this infamous deal by levelling baseless allegations against the Government”, the Minister stressed.

“We do not even think of selling the Government’s gold reserves, as our foreign reserves have dramatically increased.

The Minister said the foreign reserves of the Government topped US$ 4,000 million from US$ 3,000 million last month and the Government has no intention whatever, to sell them.

“Unlike, UNF Government, we did not privatise a single Government entity for the sole purpose of increasing the Government reserves, he said.

The Government launched the war on development and terrorism simultaneously without privatising any government venture.

“We have placed confidence in the people and the public reiterated their allegiance to the Government in a number of elections that were held after the 2005 Presidential election,” the Minister stressed.

Some forces are trying to overthrow the democratically elected Government through various conspiracies against the government and the Security Forces.

We are confident in facing challenges posed by any quarter, foreign and local as long as the people of this country are supporting us, he said.

The UNF Government had attempted to privatise all government ventures to increase the foreign reserves of the country.

Several Government ventures such as CWE were privatised. The Opposition Leader has sunk to such a low level as to charge the government of attempting to sell the Gold reserves at a time the Government has not even thought of it.