• Min. summons all institutions under portfolio for a meeting

All institutions under the Ministry of Housing, Construction and Water Supply have been called for a meeting this week to discuss issues pertaining to them, according to the ministry.

When asked about the recent revelations before the Committee on Public Enterprises (COPE) regarding the Construction Industries Development Authority (CIDA), subject Minister Dr. Susil Ranasinghe said that he was not yet aware of the matter but added that it too would be taken up during the meeting this week.

“I have called all institutions under our ministry for a meeting this week. We will discuss issues pertaining to them during that. I am not aware of this particular matter as of now. But it will also be discussed during the meeting.”

The COPE recently found fault with CIDA for allegedly harassing employees on personal grounds and for spending exorbitant amounts of public funds on legal fees. It was revealed that the authority had spent Rs. 15 million on a court case filed against one of its employees, including Rs. 600,000 paid to a lawyer for each trial date.

Although the court has ordered the reinstatement of the employee, CIDA has appealed the decision. COPE also disclosed that CIDA had planned to spend Rs. 5.9 million to renovate the roof of its office building without verifying the contractor’s quotation through internal procedures.