Shocking Ceylon Petroleum Corporation Corruption Exposed

Unveiling the Ceylon Petroleum Corporation Corruption and CPC Fraud

A recent COPE investigation revealed that corrupt deals between the Ceylon Petroleum Corporation (CPC) and filling station owners caused losses of nearly 3.5 billion rupees. Despite being aware of these fraudulent activities, successive Ministers failed to take action. The parliamentary watchdog committee, COPE, reported that the CPC’s marketing department deliberately delayed issuing a crucial circular for nine years to facilitate excessive commission payments to distributors. This manipulation, which began in 2014, persisted through multiple ministers’ tenures and even during the Covid-19 pandemic and economic crisis.

The public bore the brunt of the unwarranted expenses as CPC passed these additional costs to consumers. Auditor General W.P.C. Wickremaratne’s 2022 report estimated the losses at Rs. 3,416 million for 2014-2022. COPE Chairman Rohitha Abeygunawardena questioned the current CPC management on June 19th, demanding a list of responsible individuals within seven working days and a comprehensive report on fraudulent activities within two weeks.

COPE also requested the lodging of a complaint with the Criminal Investigation Department (CID). It was disclosed that consumers overpaid Rs. 5.85 for a litre of 92 petrol, Rs. 7.50 for 95 petrol, Rs. 5.88 for LED, and Rs. 6.96 for LSD. Despite the massive commissions paid in 2022 being categorized as sales expenditure, no action was taken against those responsible. The opposition has boycotted COPE proceedings questioning Abeygunawardena’s integrity, leaving the status quo unchanged.