by Zacki Jabbar

Former President Mahinda Rajapaksa openly encouraged elected government representatives to be corrupt, says Ex-President Chandrika Kumaratunga.

Whenever Mahinda held meetings, especially with local councillors, he always reminded them to collect their 20 percent Commissions from any project under their purview, as if it was a legal right, she told a meeting with the Foreign Correspondents’ Association in Colombo, last week.

Obtaining financial rewards to perform one’s official duties was illegal, since such monies belonged to the State, Kumaratunga said.

She also accused the Rajapaksas’ of having offered huge bribes to the Financial Crimes Investigation Division (FCID) to scuttle ongoing criminal inquiries against them. “Some members of the FCID said that they had refused to accept massive sums of money that agents of the Rajapaksas’ had proffered.”

Last Friday President Maithripala Sirisena addressing the public launch of the Right to Information Act (RTI)in Colombo, said that less than one percent of politicians and around 15 to 20 percent of public servants were honest.

Expressing happiness and satisfaction at overseeing the introduction of RTI, the President emphasised that the government would ensure transparency and accountability in government. “We need to change the culture of corruption that has come down over several decades. It is not easy and in so doing, one has to face various obstacles and threats. But our National Unity Administration is committed to implementing all its election pledges.”

Courtesy:The Island