Print Care Secure Ltd. reacts to our last week story

Last week’s story in these columns titled COPE Meeting told Ravi influenced National Lottery Board tender, process has drawn a response from Ranga Suriarachchi, a Director of Print Care Secure Ltd.

The report among other matters noted that “The Cabinet cancelled the tender which was to be awarded to Aqua Flex Lanka Pvt Ltd. The COPE observed that the Cabinet decision was also influenced by competitor Print Care Secure (pvt) Lted and went against the opinion of then Finance Minister Mangala Samaraweera.”

Mr Suriaarachchi says “We recognized that the National Lotteries Board had in awarding the tender to Aqua Flex Lanka Pvt. Ltd acted unfairly. Having first exhausted all remedial action available to us including appealing to the Chairman of the NLB, Minister Karunanayake (Subject Minister), the Tender Appeals Board and failing to find reprieve, we filed action before the Supreme Court of Sri Lanka against the NLB and the Government of Sri Lanka against what we believed to be a mendacious award of a tender for the production of scratch lottery tickets to the said company which had never before supplied a single lottery ticket. Our plea to the court inter alia sought to have the award annulled.

“We had named NLB and the entire Cabinet as Respondents, in our court application SC FR No 197/2017. After hearings commenced, on the advice of the AG (Attorney General), the Government, following a Cabinet directive, decided to cancel the tender and so informed the court. On our part, we were satisfied with the relief and moved to withdraw our application before court.

“You will kindly note that we have only followed due process of the law to vindicate our rights.”

A copy of the letter has also been sent to Charitha Herath MP, who is Chairman of the parliamentary Committee on Public Enterprises (COPE).