Eran rebuts Nivard; says ‘not fit and proper’ for CB Chief post

Samagi Jana Balawegaya (SJB) MP Eran Wickramaratne

Samagi Jana Balawegaya (SJB) MP Eran Wickramaratne yesterday responded to comments by Nivard Cabraal published yesterday alongside the former’s opinion on the latter’s upcoming appointment as the Governor of the Central Bank.

Eran emphasised that the integrity of the country as well as CBSL must be protected by ensuring that a fit and proper person was appointed as the Governor, and “Mr. Cabraal, with multiple allegations of fraudulent transactions and conflicts of interest, does not prove to be fit and proper”.

Following is the statement issued by Wickramaratne:

“My attention has been drawn to a statement by (then) State Minister of Money and Capital Markets Ajith Nivard Cabraal that appeared in the Daily FT newspaper on 13 September 2021.

“In his statement, Cabraal alleges that as a member of the previous Government we had ample opportunity to take legal action against him for any misdemeanours. To clarify, the Forensic Audits of the Central Bank conducted by BDO and KPMG were released on 7, 8 and 9 November 2019, one week before the Presidential Election. Therefore, our Government had no opportunity to pursue due process by way of requesting the Attorney General to proceed with legal action based on the findings of the Forensic Audit.

“In addition, the payment of $ 6.5 million to Imaad Zuberi, now serving a 12-year prison term, was concealed for quite some time. Even though there has been a delay in pursuing this fraud, after the conviction of Zuberi in a US court in February 2021, it cannot be ignored.

“As such, due to time constraints leading up to the week of the Presidential Election and the moral consideration that an exposé of this capacity may posit an unfair political advantage to one candidate, we were not in a position to proceed with inquiries and legal action. These decisions were taken with the understanding that irrespective of who is in government, the democratic institutions and respective persons will carry on their moral obligation and responsibility towards the country.

“As with many commitments that are passed on from one regime of government to the other, it is the responsibility of the present Government along with the Auditor General to follow up with an inquiry and hold those responsible for a fraudulent transaction done by the Central Bank under the then Governor Cabraal.

“We must protect the integrity of the country as well as CBSL by ensuring that a fit and proper person is appointed as the Governor, and Mr. Cabraal with multiple allegations of fraudulent transactions and conflicts of interest does not prove to be fit and proper. It is critical for the health of Sri Lanka’s democracy and economy that due process is observed in matters concerning the institutional integrity of the Central Bank of Sri Lanka. It is imperative that impartial inquiries are conducted and judicial proceedings are carried forward to determine the complicity of Mr. Cabraal. There are values that define us as Sri Lankans and we must strive to protect them irrespective of party politics, and refrain from extending impunity to those complicit in its violation.”