by Dasun Edirisinghe

Pivithuru Hela Urumaya (PHU) leader Udaya Gammanpila yesterday challenged any government member to come for an open debate with him regarding the money invested in the Carlton Sports Network (CSN).

Addressing the weekly press briefing organised by the Joint Opposition at the Dr N. M. Perera Centre in Borella, Gammanpila denied that USD 5 mn had been received by the CSN from overseas and challenged to prove it if the government had evidence.

He said only Rs. 207 million had been invested in the channel, a capital of Rs.7 million with a Rs. 200 million as loans input.

“Written evidence for taking loans worth Rs. 200 million produced to the police, but they levelled baseless allegations,” Gammanpila said.

The Colombo District MP said that the seven-million-rupees capital investment had been provided by its directors–– A. Ashan Fernando Rs. 5,000,000, A. Karunajeewa Rs. 1,000,000 and Kavishan Dissanayake Rs. 1,000,000. The CSN had issued its shares for them for their investment.

Gammanpila said that CSN first Chief Executive Officer and Director Rohan Weliwita had also provided equipment worth Rs. 4 million and got his employees of his satellite television channel ‘Thinetha’ to work for the CSN.

Gammanpila said the channel had paid Rs. 100,000 monthly for the rented building which housed the station and equipment and frequencies owned by VIS Broadcasting Company hired for the CSN. Later the channel got its own frequencies.

Gammanpila said that he had all the details where the channel obtained bank loans and other funds.

Former President Mahinda Rajapaksa’s second son Yoshitha was not on the director board or in any post in the CSN. Police had arrested CSN directors under the Money Laundering Act though all the details of the investment were submitted to the police, Gammanpila said.

He alleged that a Magistrate could not give bail for those who were arrested under the Money Laundering Act and it was an attempt to keep them in long time remand, while the former President’s faction was well positioned for the local government election campaign.

“I challenge anyone from the government to come for a debate regarding the arrest of CSN directors and former President’s son under the Money Laundering Act,” Gammanpila said he made the statement after studying facts and all the details during the last 17 days.

Former Ministers Bandula Gunawardena, Vasudeva Nanayakkara, Prof. Tissa Vitharana and Raja Collure also spoke at the media conference.

Courtesy:The Island