Gazette notifications relating to bond issues are published only after the transaction not before it, he noted and added that Even though Gazette No: 1895/19 bears the date 1 January 2015, it is clear that it has been published long after that date. The small print on the Sinhala version of the Gazette seems to indicate that it was actually printed only in November 2016, he said.
Former President and Kurunegala District MP, Mahinda Rajapaksa criticized the Gazette No: 1895/19 dated 1 January 2015. A press communiqué issued by him read, “This Gazette contains details of bond issues going back to 2011 and in the midst of this, the bond issues made during the year 2015 on 1 March, 15 March, 1 May, 15 May,1 August and 15 December have also been gazetted under my name.
Through such devious means they are attempting to suggest that I issued a Gazette notification on 1 January 2015 in relation to a transaction that took place about seven weeks after a new President and a new Finance Minister had assumed office. Rajapaksa further elaborated that he cannot be involved in the bond scam as it occurred during the tenure of the incumbent President. Rajapaksa yesterday threatened to take legal action against the Finance Minister Ravi and the government for attempting to blame him for the controversial Treasury Bonds issue.
“It is obvious that I could not possibly have known back on 1 January 2015 that the Treasury will need Rs 13.5 billion on 2 March 2015, that the Public Debt Department would call for bids for Rs. one billion in 30-year bonds at the face value rate of 12.50%, and that they would receive Rs 20 billion in bids of which Rs 10 billion would be accepted, he said.
Therefore, I see this as a diabolical attempt to mislead the public and palm off the Yahapalana Government’s crooked bond issues on me and my government. I will be considering taking legal action in this regard after consulting my lawyers ,” he said.
