• COPE directs CPC to complain to CID & submit internal probe reports despite wrongdoers being overseas   

Due to the prevailing dishonesty within the Ceylon Petroleum Corporation (CPC) and the deliberate delay of eight years and eight months in issuing the relevant circular to the filling station owners by the CPC’s Marketing Department, the CPC has incurred a loss of Rs. 3,416 million during 2014-2022, the Committee on Public Enterprises (COPE) revealed. 

In such a context, the COPE was of the view that the said Department should assume responsibility for committing a large-scale fraud to the CPC. The COPE insisted on holding the CPC's officials accountable. Furthermore, the COPE reiterated that the officials of the CPC are clearly responsible for such acts of fraud.

This matter was taken up for discussion on Wednesday (19) when the COPE met under the Chairpersonship of Rohitha Abeygunawardena.

Furthermore, it was disclosed that the public had to bear an additional cost for fuel due to the payment of Rs. 31,021.07 million as extra commission to the distributors. Due to the overpayment made by the officials, each customer has had to pay Rs. 5.85 for a litre of Octane 92 petrol, Rs. 7.50 for a litre of Octane 95 petrol, Rs. 5.88 for low emission diesel and Rs. 6.96 for low sulphur diesel in excess as of the calculations to date. Moreover, the commission which was paid in excess for 2022 has been accounted as a sales expenditure when it should have been entered as a receivable. It was also disclosed that the officials responsible for the said are no longer in the country.

Therefore, the COPE directed the CPC to submit a report within seven working days containing the list of names of those affiliated to committing the fraud and the measures that the CPC has taken to hold such officials accountable for their wrongdoings. The COPE also directed the CPC to submit a comprehensive report within two weeks containing the list of names of those affiliated to committing such financial fraud and to make a complaint to the Criminal Investigations Department (CID) for investigations in parallel with the internal investigations.