April 30, Colombo (LNW): Sri Lanka’s Treasury Secretary Dr Harshana Suriyapperuma, is due to face questioning before the Committee on Public Finance (CoPF) at 1 pm this (30) afternoon amid mounting concern over a suspected financial breach involving millions of US dollars.
The parliamentary panel, chaired by Dr Harsha de Silva, issued summons for the Treasury Secretary and several senior Finance Ministry officials as part of an inquiry into the reported disappearance of US$ 2.5 million. The funds are believed to have been diverted following a cyber intrusion targeting a government payment system.
Despite the scheduled appearance, Dr Suriyapperuma had informed the committee in writing a day earlier that he would be unable to attend the session. The communication was acknowledged by the committee, though members have indicated that the inquiry will proceed and that further steps may be taken to ensure accountability.
The matter first came under scrutiny during a CoPF meeting earlier this week, where lawmakers examined initial findings suggesting that the missing funds were linked to a transaction associated with a larger external debt settlement. Authorities suspect that cybercriminals may have intercepted the payment before it reached its intended recipient.
Cabinet Spokesman Nalinda Jayatissa recently confirmed that the transfer, tied to a loan amounting to nearly US$ 23 million, had failed to reach its destination. Investigations are currently underway, with officials exploring both technical vulnerabilities and procedural lapses that may have contributed to the incident.
