NOCSL conundrum continues
Legal experts explain true situation
The National Olympic Committee of Sri Lanka is governed by the dual jurisdiction of the Olympic Charter and Sri Lanka’s Sports Law, senior legal experts said this week, contradicting the position taken by NOCSL SecretaryGeneral Maxwell de Silva.
The incumbent NOCSL General Secretary maintains that the domestic body does not fall under the purview of the Sports Law but the Olympic Charter which contains the governing principles of the Olympic movement. This was conclusively dismissed by legal experts.
De Silva was recently elected Assistant Treasurer of the Judo Association while NOC treasurer Gamini Jayasinghe was made Vice President of the Handball Federation. NOC President Hemasiri Fernando is the President of Triathlon Sri Lanka—a sports body with no government registration.
“The laws are very clear,” a senior legal source familiar with the subject said. “Section 21 of the Sports ( Amendment) Act, No 47 of 1993 requires the National Olympic Committee of Sri Lanka and every National Sports Association to have their accounts audited annually by the Auditor General. The NOC has clearly violated this by not auditing their accounts annually."
“Besides, the Olympic Charter also says that member associations should present their annual reports and audited financial statements to its membership at an annual General Assembly," he said. "By not adhering to this, they have violated the Olympic Charter as well."
The bylaw to rule 27- 28 of the Olympic Charter section 1.4 states: “Each NOC shall hold a General Assembly of its members at least once a year, in accordance with the NOC’s statutes. NOCs shall, in particular, include on the agenda of their General Assemblies the presentation of annual reports and audited financial statements and, as the case may be, the election of officers and members of the executive body”.
The NOCSL last held their Elective Annual General Meeting in 2009. Fresh polls were due in July 2013 but were postponed after the IOC ruled that the regulations introduced by the Ministry of Sports back then were intrusive and did not create the environment for an impartial election.
In November 2017, the NOC held its first General Assembly since 2012 and will conduct its first Elective AGM since 2009 on February 23, 2018.
The Sunday Times also contacted attorney Panduka Keerthinanda who was behind the drafting of the Sports Regulations No 1 of 2013.
"If you take most of our Sports Associations, including the Olympic Committee, they are largely funded by the Sports Ministry except Sri Lanka Cricket which can stand on its own feet financially," he said. "These funds are approved by parliament and the Sports Ministry which are, in turn, accountable to the public. This is why these funds are required to be audited by the government auditors."
Keerthinanda was also a part of Sports Ministry team that took part in several rounds of negotiations with IOC on Sri Lanka’s Sports Law.
“So if an association or a committee has not audited their annual accounts, that amounts to a violation of the national law," he said. The line minister, in this instance the Sports Minister, has the legal right to take action. If someone says the NOC doesn’t