Nalaka Godahewa’s net worth now over Rs. 1 b!

 Tuesday, 21 January 2014 

The net worth of Dr. Nalaka Godahewa, who worked at Sri Lanka Insurance Corporation five years ago for a Rs. 125,000 salary and presently chairman of Securities and Exchange Commission of Sri Lanka (SEC), has now exceeded Rs. one billion, reports say. Even topmost figures in the government are surprised as to how he had acquired such a massive wealth within a very short period of time. Dr. Godahewa’s declared assets include Rs. 600 million worth of shares of George Stuart Finance, Rs. 200 m worth shares of Sri Lanka Hospitals Ltd. (formerly Apollo) and Rs. 200 m worth of shares of Colombo Lands and Development which owns Liberty Plaza. 

Recently, the SEC ordered that companies listed in the Colombo Stock Exchange (CSE) should have at least 20 per cent of their shares owned by the public. The idea is to prevent manipulation of the market.

However, share market investors and Finance Ministry officials cast serious doubts as to whether that order is properly enforced under Dr. Godahewa.

According to figures posted in the CSE website, www.cse.lk, Dr. Godahewa owns 5 pc of shares of George Stuart Finance. The company’s shares are being manipulated, and if the SEC order is applied and 20 pc of shares are owned by the public, the value of Dr. Godahewa’s shares comes down from Rs. 600 m to Rs. 20 m.

A 51 pc stake of George Stuart Finance, or 11,475,000 shares, is owned by CSE mafia ‘convener’ Dilith Jayaweera’s Divasa Equity (Pvt.) Ltd, followed by 25 pc, or 5,624,992, shares by Capital Trust Holding (Pvt.) Ltd., an affiliate of Seylan Bank Plc., and 5 pc, or 1,125,000 shares, by Nalaka Godahewa.

Due to the market manipulation, a George Stuart Finance share has been valued at Rs. 488, although its actual value should be Rs. 14.14, as per SEC reports issued on 13 September 2013. Therefore, it is doubtful as to what extent Dr. Godahewa enforces the orders of the SEC which he himself heads.

Jaliya Wickramasuriya is corrupt, Canada says!

 Saturday, 18 January 2014 

The Canadian government has informed Sri Lanka that it cannot recognize the island’s high commissioner elect to that country, Jaliya Wickramasuriya, who is a cousin of president Mahinda Rajapkasa, reports say.

This diplomatic issue has arisen as a result of the US government’s exposing, to the Canadian authorities, the corrupt activities of Wickramasuriya during his tenure there as the Sri Lankan ambassador.
He has allegedly defrauded 350,000 US dollars when purchasing a building to house the Sri Lankan embassy at 3025, White Haven Street, Washingtn 20008. The 62-year-old, seven-bed room house was bought for 6,250,000 USD in January 2013, but the then ambassador had obtained cabinet approval for a sum of 6,600,000 USD. According to our sources, no evaluation of the building has been made prior to buying it.

Later, the external affairs ministry had complained to the president about this fraud, but acting in his usual self, the president had undercut senior civil servants and posted Wickramasuriya to Canada. The president had told minister G.L. Peiris not to hold any inquiry against his cousin.
During his tenure in the US, Wickramasuriya had neglected his ambassadorial duties and focused on promoting his personal tea business, said the sources. He had made no contribution towards the maintenance of good diplomatic relations between his country and the US. As a result, the US government is to submit a proposal against Sri Lanka at the Geneva session of the UN Human Rights Council in March. He had misused embassy property as well as its officers who get paid by the Sri Lankan government to carry out his tea business, added the sources.