Excise Commissioner General J.M. Gunasiri has been removed from his position, and the Cabinet has approved the appointment of U.D.N. Jayaweera as the new Commissioner General of the Excise Department.
J.M. Gunasiri, who was working on a contract basis after retiring from the service, has now completed his term. The President, in his role as the Minister of Finance, submitted a Cabinet paper to end Gunasiri’s service and appoint him as the Acting Commissioner General of Excise with immediate effect.
There have been concerns raised in recent times about improper activities linked to the former Commissioner General, particularly regarding issues related to local tax revenues.
The Cabinet has now approved the appointment of Mr. U.D.N. Jayaweera, who is currently the President’s Additional Secretary (Institution Coordination 2), to take over this position.
During the previous government, the Ways and Means Parliamentary Committee, headed by Mr. Patali Champika Ranawaka, discovered significant losses to the country due to corruption, including tax evasion and fake liquor sticker schemes run by alcohol companies. The committee recommended action against these companies, but the former Commissioner General, who has now been removed, did not follow through with these orders. Instead, he provided more concessions to these companies, according to an industry expert.
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