Former Chief Minister of the Southern Province Shan Wijayalal De Silva has been arrested by the Commission to Investigate Allegations of Bribery or Corruption (CIABOC).
He was arrested this morning by Bribery Commission officials.
A case has been filed over alleged irregularities in the use of Rs. 16.5 million allocated for Southern Provincial Council members’ development fund in 2019, for the procurement of chairs for public voluntary associations in the Southern Province.
It is alleged that a manufacturing company was selected outside the approved procurement procedure, thereby conferring an undue advantage to the supplier.
Authorities further allege that 16,361 chairs purchased under the project were distributed to 54 provincial council members across the three districts in the Southern Province and delivered to their offices, resulting in financial loss to the state.
Investigations claim that the procurement and distribution process deviated from established procedures, leading to the alleged misuse of public funds.
He is scheduled to be produced before court today.
