Bribery Commission probes over 2,000 cases

Chamikara WEERASINGHE

The Commission to Investigate Allegations of Bribery and Corruption is investigating over 2,000 bribery and corruption cases handed over to the Commission’s Director of Investigations.

Commission sources said they have undertaken to investigate allegations of offences committed by some high ranking police officers, public officials, politicians, school principals and civil servants over the past few months.

The Commission has begun investigations into the controversial share deal between the National Savings Bank (NSB) and Finance Company (TFC).

“If there is a complaint, we will not let it go unattended,” said Commissioner L K Wimalachandra.

Asked about the nature of complaints it gets from the public, he said there have been many cases filed by parents against school Principals for allegedly soliciting bribes from them.

“The Commission has prosecuted them. There have been many acquittals and convictions in such cases,” he added.

“The Bribery Commission prosecuted high- ranking officers in public sector institutions. Among them were General Managers and directors of various institutions, some Pradeshiya Sabha members and grama niladharis,” Wimalachandra said.

Asked if the Commission had any cases that it has directed for investigations where any politicians have been charged with corruption or bribery offenses, he said: “There are such cases pending investigations but under the Bribery Commission Act’s clauses of secrecy , they cannot divulge information of the cases concerned.”

Asked how many such cases are pending and the number of convictions they have about similar involvements, he said: “There are many”. He said he was unable to give exact figures as they are not available with him. Pointing at hundreds of files on his table, Wimalachandra said: “We have to study each of these case files separately before we can direct them for investigations and for legal action.”

The Commission’s Director Investigation SP Somaweera Lokuge said they received 1,300 bribery complaints for investigations in 2011. “There have been 750 complaints for the past few months this year.”

“There have been many cases involving misappropriation of funds. We cannot divulge information about them because we have to keep secret under the Bribery Act,” he said.

Lokuge said upon completion of an investigation, he will refer the case concerned to the Commission for their decision to take legal actions against the culprits.

The reluctance of witnesses to assist the case after the charges are filedis one of the most common problems the Commission face when it comes to prosecuting the suspects in bribery case, as pointed out by the Commissioner Wimalachandra.

Whenever we have credible evidence to support a bribery or corruption case , we direct our legal department to prosecute them on relevant charges without failure , he added.