Residents of Monaragala have alleged that several officials attached to the Monaragala Divisional Secretariat engaged in fraudulent practices while distributing Ditwah disaster compensation payments, including forcibly taking portions of compensation money from recipients.Some residents claimed they were asked to pay commissions in order to receive compensation that had already been approved for them.

A female accused a Disaster Relief Services Officer attached to disaster relief services of taking Rs  100,000 as commission from her compensation payment. She said she received a Rs  2 million cheque on 20 April and had gone to the bank accompanied by an official and another individual connected to the office. According to her, the official instructed her on how much money to withdraw and later took Rs 100,000 from the cash bundle, claiming it was his commission. The female said she later lodged complaints with both the Monaragala Divisional Secretariat and the police. She further alleged that after the complaint was made, the official and another individual visited her home and attempted to pressure her into withdrawing the complaint, promising to return the money and instructing her to say the cash had been misplaced inside the house.

Separate allegations have also surfaced against a Grama Niladhari attached to the Maduruketiya area under the Monaragala Divisional Secretariat. Residents claimed individuals requesting compensation were asked to pay commissions in order to secure approval for higher compensation amounts. One resident alleged that although compensation worth Rs 5,000,000 had been promised, a payment of Rs 1,000,000 had been requested as commission through an intermediary. Another resident claimed Rs 50,000 had been demanded from a compensation payment of Rs 289,075, with threats that the remaining compensation would not be approved otherwise.

When contacted by The Daily Morning, Maduruketiya Grama Niladhari WG Nimal said he recommended suitable families to the relevant institutions for compensation based on the relevant circulars and criteria. However, he claimed some individuals who were not recommended for compensation due to not meeting the relevant criteria were making this allegation as part of a conspiracy. “I have not received or requested money from anyone. I performed my duty based on the relevant circulars  The allegation against me is that a person from the village requested money from them on my behalf. So what can I do about it? Why did they give money to that person? How can it be said that I requested him to demand money from them? An institutional investigation is currently underway in this regard. I hope to take legal action as soon as those proceedings are concluded.”

Meanwhile, the Department of Government Information stated yesterday that the Disaster Relief Services Officer who has been accused of seeking a commission from a Ditwah victim has been suspended from duty. Maduruketiya Grama Niladhari, who has been accused of demanding commissions, has also been transferred to another division to facilitate the investigation.

Attempts to contact the Monaragala Divisional Secretary proved futile.