The controversial contractor for the troubled Cheddi Jagan International Airport (CJIA) project is now under investigation for offering a bribe to the failed presidential re-election campaign of Mahinda Rajapakse in Sri Lanka, Reuters reported on Friday.
Rajapaksa is seeking to make a comeback in parliamentary polls set for August 17th and the bribe allegations will be seen as having a dampening effect on his efforts.
Reuters said that at the centre of the probe by the police and central bank in Sri Lanka is China Harbour Engineering Company (CHEC), which under Rajapaksa secured a US$1.4 billion deal to build a port city in Colombo that has been suspended by the current government, headed by former Rajapaksa ally and now President, Maithripala Sirisena.
CHEC, a subsidiary of state-owned China Com-munications Construction Company (CCCC), has denied as “baseless and false” any suggestion that it bribed Rajapaksa.
“CHEC calls on all the relevant Sri Lankan officials and parties not to misunderstand their responsible and cooperative partner, and not to send a wrong signal to the investors from China and all other countries,” it said in a statement.
The state-run Daily News in Sri Lanka reported on Wednesday that police were investigating an allegation that CHEC paid 149 million rupees (US$1.1 million) to Rajapaksa through various proxies.
Police spokesman Ruwan Gunasekara confirmed to Reuters that the investigation was being conducted by the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) and the central bank’s Finance Intelli-gence Unit (FIU). He declined to elaborate.
A source, with knowledge of the FIU’s investigations, said the investigation had “found a certain amount of money had gone out of the CHEC account”. It was investigating whether this payment constituted a bribe, Reuters said.
Shan Wijetunga, senior manager at Transparency International Sri Lanka said there are no laws barring companies or individuals funding political campaigns. However, if there are any vested interests it can be considered as a bribe.
Sirisena, after his election on Jan. 8, suspended most of the Chinese-backed infrastructure projects started under Rajapaksa, who denies allegations of corruption and overpricing in contract awards.
Overpricing in aspects of its contract is one of the accusations which has been levelled by local commentators against CHEC.
While in opposition, APNU+AFC had been critical of the US$138m CJIA project and had voted against funding for it on several occasions. They had termed it wasteful and ill-conceived.
The new government has signalled that while it is in favour of the extension of the runway at the CJIA it is not keen on the planned expansion of the airport.
CHEC had gotten off on a bad footing with Guyanese when it was left to a Jamaican newspaper in November 2011 to announce the project which had its genesis in the visit of a Chinese official to the region and the offer of the money. CHEC was then selected for the project. The project contract was signed 17 days before the general elections that year.
The project encompasses the construction of modern facilities; a new two-storey terminal building, west of the existing one and several air-bridges to link aircraft to the new terminal; and the extension of the primary runway by an additional 1,066 meters. It was set to be completed over a 32-month period but has suffered delays due to the cutting off funds and other problems.
There has also been a long-running feud over how many squatters in the area have to be relocated.
In June 2013, commentator Christopher Ram had said that the China-funded airport expansion project could end up costing over US$250M as opposed to the contract sum of US$138 million.
“If this contract was grossed up for all the costs and tax remissions to be borne by Guyana it will probably exceed US$250 million,” said Ram in an article in the Sunday Stabroek “Business Page”.
CHEC is also now the contractor for the MovieTowne cinema complex being built at Turkeyen.
