Dr. Harshana Suriyapperuma, the Secretary to the Treasury, is scheduled to appear before the Committee on Public Finance (COPF) at 1.00 p.m. today (30), despite earlier indicating he would be unable to attend.
The appearance follows a formal summons issued by the COPF to examine concerns surrounding the alleged disappearance of USD 2.5 million. Several senior officials from the Ministry of Finance are also expected to be present at the session.
According to COPF Chairman Harsha de Silva, the committee received a letter yesterday (29) from Dr. Suriyapperuma stating that he would not be able to attend the meeting.
The matter was first taken up when the Parliamentary Committee on Public Finance met on April 28 to review an incident involving funds reportedly lost due to a cyber breach in the Ministry of Finance’s computer system.
At that meeting, the committee decided to summon key ministry officials, including the Treasury Secretary, for further clarification at today’s session, which will be chaired by Dr. de Silva.
Meanwhile, Cabinet Spokesman Nalinda Jayatissa recently stated that the disputed payment was part of a debt settlement linked to a USD 22.9 million loan. He noted that the funds had failed to reach the intended recipient and were instead diverted, adding that investigations into the incident are currently underway.
