( Former CB Governor Cabral & Rajapaksa are responsible for the loses)
Investments made on behalf of the Employees Provident Fund (EPF) by the previous government in 2013/2014 in the Colombo Stock Market have diminished by billions of rupees, the EPF annual report revealed.
It is reported that of the total long term and short term investments amounting to Rs. 71,690,881,118 made by the Fund in 80 companies in the share market as at December 31, 2013, an investment of Rs. 52,092,805,864 made in 61 of these companies had diminished by Rs. 13,823,352,605 as at that date,the report revealed, which was presented to parliament last week.
Professor of Economics, Colombo University, Sirimal Abeyratne told The Island Financial Review that it is bad for any government to use public funds to manipulate the market because it has a very high risk factor.
According the FPF annual report, the entire investment of the Fund made in 93 companies in the share market as at June 30, 2014 had been Rs. 75,393,966, 488, while the share market value of the investment amounting to Rs. 45,533,044,007 made in 57 companies had diminished by a sum of Rs. 9,679,212,488 as at that date.
Prof Abeyratne said the use of the huge fund for the manipulation of the stock market led to a lot of corruption and many malpractices.
Eight companies in which the EPF had made long term investments amounting to Rs. 3,285,216,703 as at December 31, 2013 had incurred losses during the year 2013/2014, according to the annual reports of those companies.
Two out of these companies in which investments of Rs. 199,555,228 and Rs. 711,242,903 were made had incurred losses continuously for a period of three years. “The Fund had received no benefits whatsoever from these companies, the report added.
The report further revealed that a surcharge alone which amounted to Rs. 194,273,332 that had to be recovered from 360 institutions from 2000 to 2013 had not been recovered even as at December 31, 2013.
By Hiran H.Senewiratne
The Island