Features
Colombo Flood Protection
by N. V. Gooneratne
There were several articles on ‘Colombo flood protection’ in your newspaper and I would like to mention the following. The following fact should be placed before the public:
The Madiwela East diversion canal was constructed under the Greater Colombo Flood Control and Environment Improvement Project (GCFC&EIP) Phase 1. A little upstream of the Malabe Athurugiriya Road there was a deep excavation. For earth canals, the slope of the sides of the canal must be at least 1:1.5. i.e. for one foot vertically it should be 1.5 feet horizontally. If the earth is week, it should be 1:2 or 1: 2.5, depending on the earth. Also, in the case of deep excavations, one or two horizontal sections are required. The Consultant of the project requested sufficient land to be acquired. The officer in charge of the project gave, in writing, to construct the canal with the available land. Thus, this section was constructed with a slope of approximately 1:1. Hence, this section collapsed in a short time and the canal became ineffective. Either the required land should have been acquired or some other alternate method, such as a concrete structure, should have been constructed, in this section of the canal. I am not aware of the present condition.
In the early 1990s, a Senior Engineer decided to buy and install two 25 cusec pumps near the Elvitigala Mawatha Bridge and pump the water across the road as there was a flooding problem in the Torrington area and the pumps were bought. When the other Engineers explained that more than 50 cusecs would flow under gravity these pumps became redundant. At that time there was the problem of pollution in the canals and then the Engineer who ordered the pumps decided to install them at the North Lock at Nagalagam Street to pump water from the Kelani River to flush the canal system. For this, a gate was installed with the bottom of the gate at 6.0 feet above mean sea level when fully opened which was the designed high flood level. During the 1992 floods, the water level, at the North Lock, was about 7.0 feet above mean sea level. There were several complaints that the gate was obstructing the flow. Dr. Obeysekera, who was the Chairman, contacted a high officer in the Navy (I remember as Mr. Tissera) and instructed me to go and meet him to get the gate demolished. I went to the Navy Camp, in the Mutual area, and met the officer who sent two Navy Officers with me to the North Lock. When we went there, we observed that the water was flowing as the bottom level of the canal was 4.0 feet below mean sea level and the gate was fully opened up to 6.0 feet above sea level. However, there was an obstruction as the water level was 7.0 feet above mean sea level. As the gate was a wooden one, the two Navy Officers removed the bolts and nuts from the timber obstructing the flow, removed the timber and the water flowed without any obstruction after that. The claim that the gate was blasted is false.
There were a large number of structures in the canal system. During the 1992 floods, the salt water exclusion structure near the Havelock Road Bridge, in the Wellawatte Canal was a major obstruction. There were wide piers and less than 30% of the width of the canal was flowing when all the gates were open. The difference in water level, on either side of the structure, was about five feet. Colombo had not experienced such a heavy rainfall for a very long time and also a large extent of land had been developed increasing the discharge to the canal system. The Corporation was very fortunate that Dr. Obeysekera was the Chairman at that time. He immediately brought the Corporation machinery and staff and demolished the structure within two or three hours. This enabled the water level to be reduced considerably although it took some time for the water to discharge to the sea, as the volume of water, collected in the catchment area, was large. The Wellawatte Canal is the main outlet when it rains, at present, and it is important to maximise the discharge to the sea when it rains.
Colombo developed mainly due to the Port, and most parts of it are at a low level. Most of the rain water was earlier retained in the large marshes which have been developed mainly during the last 50 years and has resulted in high levels of water when it rains. The Parliament floor level is about 7.0 feet above mean sea level and some Committee Rooms are about a foot below that level. The Galle Road is around 30 feet above mean sea level. If you look at the water in the canal, near the Galle Road Bridge near Savoy Cinema you can see how deep it is. However, if you look at the water in the lake at Battaramulla Bridge you can observe that it is only a few feet below the bridge although there is very little difference in the water levels during dry periods. When Parliament was to be constructed, the Corporation requested, in writing, that the Parliament floor level be raised by at least two feet. At that time the Corporation was dredging the lake and the person in charge of the project rejected the request saying they only knew how to pump chocolate mud and did not know the effect of seeing the water when anyone is in the Committee Rooms. The result is that Parliament has been under water several times and a large sum of money is spent to protect the Parliament when the water level in the lake rises.
The Beira Lake is an artificial lake, constructed at 6.0 feet above mean sea level, to transport goods from the harbour to the warehouses that were constructed around the Beira Lake. Now goods are transported in containers. Hence, the Beira outlet, near the old Parliament can be used as an outlet when it rains, as the necessity to maintain the water level at 6.0 feet above mean sea level is not there. After some studies, the water level can be reduced, at least during the rainy periods, by constructing some gates at the outfall. Then by connecting the St. Sebastian Canal near, the Technical College, to the Canal, leading to the Beira Lake, the water level in the main canal system can be reduced.
When the Parliament was constructed it was decided that there should be a green belt on either side of the canals. Also the canal reservation, when the Irrigation Department handed over the canals to the Corporation, in 1979, was one chain (66 feet) in some sections and half a chain (33 feet) in some sections of the canal. However, the Corporation has reduced it to 6.0 meters (20 feet) and 3.0 meters (10 feet). Thus, there is hardly any green belt and insufficient room for maintenance.
In the report prepared for the GCFC&EIP Phase 1 it was proposed to have 980 acres of retention around the Colombo Canal System and in addition it was stated that there is 3.8 million cubic meters of retention around the Parliament Lake of which 95% should be kept for retention. The Corporation through the government acquired about 1,200 acres of which some areas were fairly high and some low areas had not been acquired. The acquisition should have been done according to some level such as those less than four feet above mean sea level.
People, whose land had been acquired, wanted them released and when they knew that more than the requirement had been acquired in an unreasonable manner the demands increased. The Corporation decided to release a maximum of 20 perches to an original owner and keep 980 acres, but people with influence obtained in acres whereas some did not get anything. Now, out of the 1,200 acres acquired there must be less than 600 acres. The land around the Parliament Lake had been acquired by the UDA and hence the Corporation did not get it acquired as the UDA, which implemented the Parliament Project, agreed to keep it. With the development that has been carried out around the Parliament Lake definitely the retention available is very much less than the requirement.
At present, the Wellawatte Canal is the main outlet and it is important to maximise the flow in the canal. The width of the canal under the Galle Road Bridge is very much less than the canal on either side of the bridge. When it rains you can see a difference in the water level on either side. The Consultants of the GCFC&EIP Phase 1 observed this but did not consider it as reconstructing the Galle Road Bridge was not allowed due to the traffic. However, after the Marine Drive Bridge Construction and the Duplication Road Bridge Construction this was possible. Similar to the Baseline Road Bridge construction, it could be done even half at a time. In 2005, after Colombo experienced some floods, the government agreed to fund it with local funds. As this bridge is under the RDA, a decision was taken at the meeting for the Corporation to prepare an estimate with the RDA. The Chairman at that time was a politician and a Board Member advised him not to get RDA involved and that the Corporation could construct the bridge on its own. Hence to date this has not been done. If anyone stands at the Galle Road Bridge and looks towards the sea, you can see that there is no reservation and how people have encroached on the canal bund. On the other side, when the Irrigation Department handed over the canals, between Galle Road and Duplication Road, the Wellawatte side was Canal reservation and there were only trees. Today, the entire section is occupied and some have even constructed buildings up to the canal with no reservation. Hence the widening of the canal by reconstructing the bridge will be difficult.
When the tunnel was constructed under the GCFC&EIP Phase 2 along 5th Lane, in Colpetty, there was a concrete structure along Duplication Road and the bottom of it was about 9.0 feet above mean sea level. The inside of the pipes used for the tunnel was 8.0 feet in diameter and with the thickness of the concrete was nearly 9.0 feet. As the tunnel had to be below this structure and satisfactory investigations had not been done before awarding the contract, at the sea outfall, the bottom of the pipe was at sea level. It would have been better if it was at least a foot higher, but could not be done. The concrete structure, along Duplication Road, is very likely to be the sewerage line from Colpetty to Wellawatte. If it is the sewerage line, it will cross Bullers Road also. I observed that a new tunnel is being constructed along Bullers Road. According to the plans displayed, it is 10.0 feet in diameter. In that case, either the outlet will be below sea level or the pipe will have to be raised and the full capacity cannot be utilised. This will be a waste of funds.
The Corporation handles only the main canals. The drains taking water to the canals are maintained by the CMC. Sometime ago a study was done and over 150 problem areas were identified and the CMC was to solve them. However, during recent rains it was observed that very little had been done. They also do not follow up when anyone creates obstructions and it is seen that more areas are flooded when it rains. In the recent past, the RDA constructed drains on either side of the Marine Drive. Some sections were rectangular drains and others were hume pipes. The drains were covered and paved for people to walk. Now the people have a nice walking path on either side of Marine Drive. However, the drains are blocked and never cleaned. When it rains, all the sea side roads, in Colpetty, Bambalapitiya and Wellawatte, are flooded. For the recent rains, people living close to Marine Drive found the roads and their gardens flooded and a few even may have had water in their houses. In addition, all the garbage bins were floating and people had to clean everything. The CMC and RDA are aware of the problem as it has happened several times, but do not clean the Marine Drive drains. The main problem is that officers are attending meetings and do not attend to the work.
Getting foreign aid and implementing projects seem to be what everyone wants. When foreign aid is given the country that gives the funds, although it is a loan, always sends their people at least as Consultants and sometimes to implement the project. Very often these Consultants have little experience and learn implementing projects here at our expense. I have seen a large number of Consultants and I am sure our local companies can do a better job for a fraction of the cost. It is only for specialised fields that we require Consultants. For the GCFC&EIP Phase 2 tunnel, at Colpetty, the Corporation had a Consultant. The Construction period was about eight or nine months. He was stationed at Thailand and during the construction he came about five times and stayed about a week each time he came. He was the only person that deserved to be called a Consultant. In the GCFC&EIP Phase 3 there was a large canal excavated at Attidiya. When this was excavated there was no access to six lands. The Consultants proposed six bridges on piles. Then a Corporation Engineer suggested to construct a 20-foot road on the other side of the canal which was implemented instead of the six bridges, which resulted in a large saving. This indicates the experience of the Consultants that we get paying large sums of money in foreign currency obtained as loans. Very often these inexperienced Consultants prepare preliminary designs for a project within one year. Thus, what is implemented is not the best solution as they are inexperienced and do not consult the local people sufficiently. In most projects, the local staff do not do sufficient checking to get a better job done.
I can write more, but will conclude here mentioning that we must carry out the drainage improvements utilising the funds carefully and implement the best solutions. It is important that all projects are monitored to see that incorrect decisions that can be avoided are not taken. We must also use gravity drainage as much as possible and avoid pumping, which is expensive and we do not have proper maintenance experience and sufficient funds which is essential for pumping schemes. Besides, all responsible authorities should see that they do not allow any organisation or person to create additional problems. When the GCFC&EIP Phase 2 was implemented it was observed that in a road off Jawatte Road a house had been built over the drain. Hence it would not have been cleaned and there was no way to improve the drain. How this has been allowed defies comprehension. Hence, it was not possible to widen the drain. Fortunately, a civic-minded resident allowed to construct a drain through his garden and divert the water.
by Dr Gotabhya Ranasinghe
Senior Consultant Cardiologist
National Hospital Sri Lanka
When we sought a meeting with Hon Dr. Ramesh Pathirana, Minister of Health, he graciously cleared his busy schedule to accommodate us. Renowned for his attentive listening and deep understanding, Minister Pathirana is dedicated to advancing the health sector. His openness and transparency exemplify the qualities of an exemplary politician and minister.
Dr. Palitha Mahipala, the current Health Secretary, demonstrates both commendable enthusiasm and unwavering support. This combination of attributes makes him a highly compatible colleague for the esteemed Minister of Health.
Our discussion centered on a project that has been in the works for the past 30 years, one that no other minister had managed to advance.
Minister Pathirana, however, recognized the project’s significance and its potential to revolutionize care for heart patients.
The project involves the construction of a state-of-the-art facility at the premises of the National Hospital Colombo. The project’s location within the premises of the National Hospital underscores its importance and relevance to the healthcare infrastructure of the nation.
This facility will include a cardiology building and a tertiary care center, equipped with the latest technology to handle and treat all types of heart-related conditions and surgeries.
Securing funding was a major milestone for this initiative. Minister Pathirana successfully obtained approval for a $40 billion loan from the Asian Development Bank. With the funding in place, the foundation stone is scheduled to be laid in September this year, and construction will begin in January 2025.
This project guarantees a consistent and uninterrupted supply of stents and related medications for heart patients. As a result, patients will have timely access to essential medical supplies during their treatment and recovery. By securing these critical resources, the project aims to enhance patient outcomes, minimize treatment delays, and maintain the highest standards of cardiac care.
Upon its fruition, this monumental building will serve as a beacon of hope and healing, symbolizing the unwavering dedication to improving patient outcomes and fostering a healthier society.We anticipate a future marked by significant progress and positive outcomes in Sri Lanka’s cardiovascular treatment landscape within the foreseeable timeframe.
by Fr. Emmanuel Fernando, OMI
Jesuit Fr. Aloysius Pieris (affectionately called Fr. Aloy) celebrated his 90th birthday on April 9, 2024 and I, as the editor of our Oblate Journal, THE MISSIONARY OBLATE had gone to press by that time. Immediately I decided to publish an article, appreciating the untiring selfless services he continues to offer for inter-Faith dialogue, the renewal of the Catholic Church, his concern for the poor and the suffering Sri Lankan masses and to me, the present writer.
It was in 1988, when I was appointed Director of the Oblate Scholastics at Ampitiya by the then Oblate Provincial Fr. Anselm Silva, that I came to know Fr. Aloy more closely. Knowing well his expertise in matters spiritual, theological, Indological and pastoral, and with the collaborative spirit of my companion-formators, our Oblate Scholastics were sent to Tulana, the Research and Encounter Centre, Kelaniya, of which he is the Founder-Director, for ‘exposure-programmes’ on matters spiritual, biblical, theological and pastoral. Some of these dimensions according to my view and that of my companion-formators, were not available at the National Seminary, Ampitiya.
Ever since that time, our Oblate formators/ accompaniers at the Oblate Scholasticate, Ampitiya , have continued to send our Oblate Scholastics to Tulana Centre for deepening their insights and convictions regarding matters needed to serve the people in today’s context. Fr. Aloy also had tried very enthusiastically with the Oblate team headed by Frs. Oswald Firth and Clement Waidyasekara to begin a Theologate, directed by the Religious Congregations in Sri Lanka, for the contextual formation/ accompaniment of their members. It should very well be a desired goal of the Leaders / Provincials of the Religious Congregations.
Besides being a formator/accompanier at the Oblate Scholasticate, I was entrusted also with the task of editing and publishing our Oblate journal, ‘The Missionary Oblate’. To maintain the quality of the journal I continue to depend on Fr. Aloy for his thought-provoking and stimulating articles on Biblical Spirituality, Biblical Theology and Ecclesiology. I am very grateful to him for his generous assistance. Of late, his writings on renewal of the Church, initiated by Pope St. John XX111 and continued by Pope Francis through the Synodal path, published in our Oblate journal, enable our readers to focus their attention also on the needed renewal in the Catholic Church in Sri Lanka. Fr. Aloy appreciated very much the Synodal path adopted by the Jesuit Pope Francis for the renewal of the Church, rooted very much on prayerful discernment. In my Religious and presbyteral life, Fr.Aloy continues to be my spiritual animator / guide and ongoing formator / acccompanier.
Fr. Aloysius Pieris, BA Hons (Lond), LPh (SHC, India), STL (PFT, Naples), PhD (SLU/VC), ThD (Tilburg), D.Ltt (KU), has been one of the eminent Asian theologians well recognized internationally and one who has lectured and held visiting chairs in many universities both in the West and in the East. Many members of Religious Congregations from Asian countries have benefited from his lectures and guidance in the East Asian Pastoral Institute (EAPI) in Manila, Philippines. He had been a Theologian consulted by the Federation of Asian Bishops’ Conferences for many years. During his professorship at the Gregorian University in Rome, he was called to be a member of a special group of advisers on other religions consulted by Pope Paul VI.
Fr. Aloy is the author of more than 30 books and well over 500 Research Papers. Some of his books and articles have been translated and published in several countries. Among those books, one can find the following: 1) The Genesis of an Asian Theology of Liberation (An Autobiographical Excursus on the Art of Theologising in Asia, 2) An Asian Theology of Liberation, 3) Providential Timeliness of Vatican 11 (a long-overdue halt to a scandalous millennium, 4) Give Vatican 11 a chance, 5) Leadership in the Church, 6) Relishing our faith in working for justice (Themes for study and discussion), 7) A Message meant mainly, not exclusively for Jesuits (Background information necessary for helping Francis renew the Church), 8) Lent in Lanka (Reflections and Resolutions, 9) Love meets wisdom (A Christian Experience of Buddhism, 10) Fire and Water 11) God’s Reign for God’s poor, 12) Our Unhiddden Agenda (How we Jesuits work, pray and form our men). He is also the Editor of two journals, Vagdevi, Journal of Religious Reflection and Dialogue, New Series.
Fr. Aloy has a BA in Pali and Sanskrit from the University of London and a Ph.D in Buddhist Philosophy from the University of Sri Lankan, Vidyodaya Campus. On Nov. 23, 2019, he was awarded the prestigious honorary Doctorate of Literature (D.Litt) by the Chancellor of the University of Kelaniya, the Most Venerable Welamitiyawe Dharmakirthi Sri Kusala Dhamma Thera.
Fr. Aloy continues to be a promoter of Gospel values and virtues. Justice as a constitutive dimension of love and social concern for the downtrodden masses are very much noted in his life and work. He had very much appreciated the commitment of the late Fr. Joseph (Joe) Fernando, the National Director of the Social and Economic Centre (SEDEC) for the poor.
In Sri Lanka, a few religious Congregations – the Good Shepherd Sisters, the Christian Brothers, the Marist Brothers and the Oblates – have invited him to animate their members especially during their Provincial Congresses, Chapters and International Conferences. The mainline Christian Churches also have sought his advice and followed his seminars. I, for one, regret very much, that the Sri Lankan authorities of the Catholic Church –today’s Hierarchy—- have not sought Fr.
Aloy’s expertise for the renewal of the Catholic Church in Sri Lanka and thus have not benefited from the immense store of wisdom and insight that he can offer to our local Church while the Sri Lankan bishops who governed the Catholic church in the immediate aftermath of the Second Vatican Council (Edmund Fernando OMI, Anthony de Saram, Leo Nanayakkara OSB, Frank Marcus Fernando, Paul Perera,) visited him and consulted him on many matters. Among the Tamil Bishops, Bishop Rayappu Joseph was keeping close contact with him and Bishop J. Deogupillai hosted him and his team visiting him after the horrible Black July massacre of Tamils.
Sri Lanka-Singapore Free Trade Agreement
By Gomi Senadhira
senadhiragomi@gmail.com
“You might tell fairy tales, but the progress of a country cannot be achieved through such narratives. A country cannot be developed by making false promises. The country moved backward because of the electoral promises made by political parties throughout time. We have witnessed that the ultimate result of this is the country becoming bankrupt. Unfortunately, many segments of the population have not come to realize this yet.” – President Ranil Wickremesinghe, 2024 Budget speech
Any Sri Lankan would agree with the above words of President Wickremesinghe on the false promises our politicians and officials make and the fairy tales they narrate which bankrupted this country. So, to understand this, let’s look at one such fairy tale with lots of false promises; Ranil Wickremesinghe’s greatest achievement in the area of international trade and investment promotion during the Yahapalana period, Sri Lanka-Singapore Free Trade Agreement (SLSFTA).
It is appropriate and timely to do it now as Finance Minister Wickremesinghe has just presented to parliament a bill on the National Policy on Economic Transformation which includes the establishment of an Office for International Trade and the Sri Lanka Institute of Economics and International Trade.
Was SLSFTA a “Cleverly negotiated Free Trade Agreement” as stated by the (former) Minister of Development Strategies and International Trade Malik Samarawickrama during the Parliamentary Debate on the SLSFTA in July 2018, or a colossal blunder covered up with lies, false promises, and fairy tales? After SLSFTA was signed there were a number of fairy tales published on this agreement by the Ministry of Development Strategies and International, Institute of Policy Studies, and others.
However, for this article, I would like to limit my comments to the speech by Minister Samarawickrama during the Parliamentary Debate, and the two most important areas in the agreement which were covered up with lies, fairy tales, and false promises, namely: revenue loss for Sri Lanka and Investment from Singapore. On the other important area, “Waste products dumping” I do not want to comment here as I have written extensively on the issue.
1. The revenue loss
During the Parliamentary Debate in July 2018, Minister Samarawickrama stated “…. let me reiterate that this FTA with Singapore has been very cleverly negotiated by us…. The liberalisation programme under this FTA has been carefully designed to have the least impact on domestic industry and revenue collection. We have included all revenue sensitive items in the negative list of items which will not be subject to removal of tariff. Therefore, 97.8% revenue from Customs duty is protected. Our tariff liberalisation will take place over a period of 12-15 years! In fact, the revenue earned through tariffs on goods imported from Singapore last year was Rs. 35 billion.
The revenue loss for over the next 15 years due to the FTA is only Rs. 733 million– which when annualised, on average, is just Rs. 51 million. That is just 0.14% per year! So anyone who claims the Singapore FTA causes revenue loss to the Government cannot do basic arithmetic! Mr. Speaker, in conclusion, I call on my fellow members of this House – don’t mislead the public with baseless criticism that is not grounded in facts. Don’t look at petty politics and use these issues for your own political survival.”
I was surprised to read the minister’s speech because an article published in January 2018 in “The Straits Times“, based on information released by the Singaporean Negotiators stated, “…. With the FTA, tariff savings for Singapore exports are estimated to hit $10 million annually“.
As the annual tariff savings (that is the revenue loss for Sri Lanka) calculated by the Singaporean Negotiators, Singaporean $ 10 million (Sri Lankan rupees 1,200 million in 2018) was way above the rupees’ 733 million revenue loss for 15 years estimated by the Sri Lankan negotiators, it was clear to any observer that one of the parties to the agreement had not done the basic arithmetic!
Six years later, according to a report published by “The Morning” newspaper, speaking at the Committee on Public Finance (COPF) on 7th May 2024, Mr Samarawickrama’s chief trade negotiator K.J. Weerasinghehad had admitted “…. that forecasted revenue loss for the Government of Sri Lanka through the Singapore FTA is Rs. 450 million in 2023 and Rs. 1.3 billion in 2024.”
If these numbers are correct, as tariff liberalisation under the SLSFTA has just started, we will pass Rs 2 billion very soon. Then, the question is how Sri Lanka’s trade negotiators made such a colossal blunder. Didn’t they do their basic arithmetic? If they didn’t know how to do basic arithmetic they should have at least done their basic readings. For example, the headline of the article published in The Straits Times in January 2018 was “Singapore, Sri Lanka sign FTA, annual savings of $10m expected”.
Anyway, as Sri Lanka’s chief negotiator reiterated at the COPF meeting that “…. since 99% of the tariffs in Singapore have zero rates of duty, Sri Lanka has agreed on 80% tariff liberalisation over a period of 15 years while expecting Singapore investments to address the imbalance in trade,” let’s turn towards investment.
Investment from Singapore
In July 2018, speaking during the Parliamentary Debate on the FTA this is what Minister Malik Samarawickrama stated on investment from Singapore, “Already, thanks to this FTA, in just the past two-and-a-half months since the agreement came into effect we have received a proposal from Singapore for investment amounting to $ 14.8 billion in an oil refinery for export of petroleum products. In addition, we have proposals for a steel manufacturing plant for exports ($ 1 billion investment), flour milling plant ($ 50 million), sugar refinery ($ 200 million). This adds up to more than $ 16.05 billion in the pipeline on these projects alone.
And all of these projects will create thousands of more jobs for our people. In principle approval has already been granted by the BOI and the investors are awaiting the release of land the environmental approvals to commence the project.
I request the Opposition and those with vested interests to change their narrow-minded thinking and join us to develop our country. We must always look at what is best for the whole community, not just the few who may oppose. We owe it to our people to courageously take decisions that will change their lives for the better.”
According to the media report I quoted earlier, speaking at the Committee on Public Finance (COPF) Chief Negotiator Weerasinghe has admitted that Sri Lanka was not happy with overall Singapore investments that have come in the past few years in return for the trade liberalisation under the Singapore-Sri Lanka Free Trade Agreement. He has added that between 2021 and 2023 the total investment from Singapore had been around $162 million!
What happened to those projects worth $16 billion negotiated, thanks to the SLSFTA, in just the two-and-a-half months after the agreement came into effect and approved by the BOI? I do not know about the steel manufacturing plant for exports ($ 1 billion investment), flour milling plant ($ 50 million) and sugar refinery ($ 200 million).
However, story of the multibillion-dollar investment in the Petroleum Refinery unfolded in a manner that would qualify it as the best fairy tale with false promises presented by our politicians and the officials, prior to 2019 elections.
Though many Sri Lankans got to know, through the media which repeatedly highlighted a plethora of issues surrounding the project and the questionable credentials of the Singaporean investor, the construction work on the Mirrijiwela Oil Refinery along with the cement factory began on the24th of March 2019 with a bang and Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe and his ministers along with the foreign and local dignitaries laid the foundation stones.
That was few months before the 2019 Presidential elections. Inaugurating the construction work Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe said the projects will create thousands of job opportunities in the area and surrounding districts.
The oil refinery, which was to be built over 200 acres of land, with the capacity to refine 200,000 barrels of crude oil per day, was to generate US$7 billion of exports and create 1,500 direct and 3,000 indirect jobs. The construction of the refinery was to be completed in 44 months. Four years later, in August 2023 the Cabinet of Ministers approved the proposal presented by President Ranil Wickremesinghe to cancel the agreement with the investors of the refinery as the project has not been implemented! Can they explain to the country how much money was wasted to produce that fairy tale?
It is obvious that the President, ministers, and officials had made huge blunders and had deliberately misled the public and the parliament on the revenue loss and potential investment from SLSFTA with fairy tales and false promises.
As the president himself said, a country cannot be developed by making false promises or with fairy tales and these false promises and fairy tales had bankrupted the country. “Unfortunately, many segments of the population have not come to realize this yet”.
(The writer, a specialist and an activist on trade and development issues . )
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