COLOMBO: Sri Lankan President Maithripala Sirisena has been accused by a foreign investigative media agency, Fairfax Media, of corruption dating back to 2009-2011, when he was minister of agriculture.
According to the foreign media report an Australian company was asked to give a donation to his political party when Mahinda Rajapaksa was president, to get contracts for World Bank-funded sewerage and dam projects.
On Thursday, President Sirisena issued a statement denying that he had ever indulged in corruption in his political life or encouraged any one to indulge in it but ordered the Attorney General in Sri Lanka to independently investigate the charge.
The allegation comes at a time when efforts are being made to investigate corrupt leaders of the former regime of Mahinda Rajapaksa.
According to sources close to the president, speculation is rife among his close aides as to why the charge is being made now, about an incident that occurred in 2009.
Published in Dawn, August 27th, 2016
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