Features
Mastering Showbiz
CONFESSIONS OF A GLOBAL GYPSY
Dr. Chandana (Chandi) Jayawardena DPhil
President – Chandi J. Associates Inc. Consulting, Canada
Founder & Administrator – Global Hospitality Forum
chandij@sympatico.ca
Lights, Camera, Action!
In the mid and late 1980s, my wife and I were actively involved with the fashion industry and modelling for TV ads. Our social life in Colombo was busy and my work schedule as the Director of Food and Beverage at Le Galadari Meridien Hotel was hectic. In spite of that, we managed to find time to appear in popular Christmas TV shows and fashion shows, including a top bridal show held at Hotel Lanka Oberoi. My PR outside the hotel enhanced business for Le Galadari Meridien. I was often invited to welcome well-known, actresses, beauty queens and showbiz personalities attending beauty pageants and fashion shows. I also contributed as an occasional judge for national beauty contests.
At Le Galadari Meridien Hotel, my team frequently organized theme food festivals in our restaurants. We also promoted Sri Lankan food well at the Marco Polo, the hotel’s oriental restaurant, and were invited to organize three large Sri Lankan food festivals at Le Meridien hotels overseas. My previous experience in organizing and leading such festivals in Hong Kong and Singapore became useful. We used those food festivals to provide overseas exposure to our chefs and middle managers.
As a part of my research for work, my wife and I attended all food festivals organized by competitor, five-star international hotels in Colombo. Our attendance was important particularly at the newest hotel, Colombo Hilton, which maintained excellent standards. The second Food and Beverage Manager of Colombo Hilton was a school mate of mine. We eventually came to an agreement to coordinate themes and dates of our food festivals at both hotels. This way we avoided direct competition over the same period of time and with similar products. In any business, one must have good communication with the main competition.
Hospitality and Showbiz
I gradually came to the conclusion that hospitality and show business which go hand in hand and have many similarities, is really one industry focusing on entertaining customers, while making profits. I was fortunate that the top bands, western musicians, entertainers and lobby musicians were contracted by the Food and Beverage division of Le Galadari Meridien to provide classy entertainment to enhance the overall dining experience of our customers.
Entertainment was an essential element of our total food and beverage operation. Usually, in the evening, we had live music in three locations of the hotel. I learnt to treat entertainers as very important members of the hotel family. That orientation proved to be mutually beneficial.
Le Galadari Meridien provided me an opportunity to develop a new hobby, as part of my work. I gradually learnt a lot from the hotel entertainers and became a busy showbiz producer. I liked the famous 1946 song, “There’s No Business, Like Show Business.” This song is a slightly, tongue-in-cheek salute to the glamour and excitement of a life in show business. I chose it as the opening, choreographed act for one of the shows I produced.
Business of Night Clubs
Colombo 2000, the night club of Le Galadari Meridien faced tough competition from night clubs in the other five five-star hotels in Colombo, as well as from a few hotels in Mount Lavinia. A couple of our competitor hotels used the services of top entertainers as Hotel Entertainment Managers. At Le Meridien, I happily looked after that function.
I felt that not having a separate entrance (adjoining a car park) to Colombo 2000 was a hotel design error. Most of the customers of Colombo 2000 were locals and all of them used the main entrance of the hotel to walk towards the night club. This made the lobby of the hotel jam-packed during the evenings of Fridays and Saturdays. I knew that ‘people attract people’ in the hospitality business, but we had to make extra arrangements with help from the Hotel Security Manager, to ensure that the lobby was not overcrowded and noisy. These annoyances at times upset some of our European guests.
On a positive note, I was happy that Colombo 2000 had a modern and futuristic appeal with its brand, layout, furniture, interior décor, colour scheme and lighting. Compared to restaurants, night clubs have a shorter life cycle, and is a different ball-game. Therefore, operators of night clubs had to be innovative in changing nightclub concepts more frequently to be trendy, fashionable and marketable. I found it useful to check night club themes and special effects in Asian countries more advanced than Sri Lanka, such as Singapore (which was around two years ahead of nightclub trends in Sri Lanka).
Competing night clubs of Colombo 2000 had either live bands or DJs, so we combined both. Most of the night clubs in Sri Lanka at that time had a limited operation of three or four nights, focusing on the weekend business. I took a chance on making Colombo 2000 a seven-day operation with live bands every day and opening at the same time (9:30 pm). I also used promotional gimmicks for slow days of business. These included, weekly ‘ladies’ night’ with free entrance for ladies, daily midnight supper at discount rates, free entrance for all after 3:00 am and free, non-alcoholic mixers for liquor etc. We soon realized that customers loved those initiatives.
We used ‘the seven-day’ operation as the unique selling proposition in our ad campaigns. We became very busy and the dominant night club in Colombo. With earning unprecedented levels of tips and a service charge, the team of employees at Colombo 2000 were very happy. They were very proud of what we achieved together. Late 1980s were heydays of night club business in Colombo.
Soon, Colombo 2000 had many attractive offers from liquor companies, such as Vat 69 Whisky for major joint promotions. When in 1987, Michael Jackson commenced his first solo concert tour launched in support of his seventh studio album ‘Bad,’ his fans around the world went crazy, including the Sri Lankan youth in Colombo and large cities.
The ‘Bad’ tour by the King of Pop, spanned 16 months, 123 concerts for over four million fans across 15 countries. When Pepsi Cola signed a second, $10 million deal with Michael Jackson in support of his “Bad” album and tour, he appeared in a few ads. This was arguably one of the greatest ad campaigns in history of TV, and influenced the pop culture around the world.
I wanted Colombo 2000 to ride the mega wave of ‘Bad’. I approached the bottling agents for Pepsi in Sri Lanka and made a deal with them. This included some attractive financial sponsorship, joint ads and nightly ‘Bad’ album videos played on a big screen at Colombo 2000 when the bands took their breaks. It was a very successful promotion, which significantly increased attendance and revenue, as well as promoting Pepsi sales as our preferred cola. Coca Cola was certainly not pleased!
After repeatedly watching all those music videos for songs in ‘Bad,’ I became an ardent fan of Michael Jackson. I made a special trip to Singapore in 1993, with family and friends, to watch one of his ‘Dangerous’ world tour shows. Despite the earliest sexual abuse accusations affecting his schedule, and at times, focus, his performance on that night was simply magical! He was a once in a generation talent and his popularity could only be compared to Elvis and the Beatles.
From a Brainstorming, a Show is Born…
June, July and August were the busiest months for banquets. We catered for hundreds of big weddings during that period. After that the banqueting occupancy went down until the Christmas and New Year period. In addition to organizing various food festivals in restaurants, I felt that we should create our own events to fill the ballroom during low occupancy months.
I commenced brainstorming with the ten, departmental managers in my division and then with the supervisors. Historically, these professionals were accustomed to taking orders, rather than ‘thinking outside the box’ to create new business. I was somewhat disappointed that our team could not generate ideas to optimize profits through new creations.
One day I had a business chat with Sohan Weerasinghe, a lawyer-turned-musician who was the band leader and front man of the main band of Colombo 2000 – Sohan and the X-Periments with Estelle. The main purpose of my chat with him was to negotiate a revenue-based payment per night for their new contract.
Fridays and Saturdays were the best days for Colombo 2000, when we had a full house of over 400 customers dancing till 4:00 am. On Sundays the customers and revenue were reduced to about half, but we were paying the band the same rate, regardless of attendance. That did not make sense to me. I negotiated a better contract.
Sohan eventually accepted my proposal for a different, revenue-based, fee formulae per night. Sohan was shrewd, diplomatic, intelligent and funny. He also had a good business sense and practical ideas. We quickly became good friends. After my first contract negotiation meeting with him, I felt that I should meet all hotel entertainers under contract at the hotel for a brainstorming session. Unlike my brainstorming sessions with the departmental managers and supervisors, the sessions with the entertainers were productive with some great ideas for the year 1987.
After explaining my objective of improving the ballroom occupancy during the slow months, I did not talk much, but encouraged musicians to suggest solutions. They came with a few ideas and we decided to organize a series of weekly shows under the theme ‘Musical Stars of 1986’ in the ballroom. A key aim was to promote young musicians who had performed in western bands around the country in the previous year. All musicians under contract at Le Meridien contributed on an honorary basis as judges for these new, weekly contests and as performers for the gala final show.
As a young child I grew up on stage when my father wrote, produced and directed several stage plays. However, I had no musical talent or experience in being a producer. When, I was chosen as the project leader and the show producer of ‘Musical Stars of 1986’, by the musicians working at the hotel, I had to learn quickly about production essentials from those same musicians.
I negotiated with potential sponsors and arranged many attractive prizes. These included free weekly publicity in the Sunday Observer newspaper, free return airline tickets to Singapore from Air Lanka and free accommodation at Le Meridien Singapore for the winning band – all of which were very attractive prizes. Altogether, 22 bands of young musicians competed for the title of ‘The Best Musical Group of 1986’.Sohan handled the sound and I coordinated lighting and special effects with the hotel’s engineering department. I also coordinated the logistics, ads, publicity and ticket sales, and I prepared a detailed outline giving cues and timing for each segment of the final show — in consultation with the team of hotel musicians. I gradually improved my skills in developing these cue sheets for shows and detailed story boards for music videos, I directed in later years. The final show was sold out quickly and it was a big success. The hotel received a vast amount of free publicity and also earned good profits.
Producing Two More Music Shows
The day after the ‘Musical Stars of 1986’ final show, I received many calls from sponsors, musicians and people who purchased tickets for the show. They all were pleased and Mr. Harold Pieris, the Editor of the Sunday Observer, asked me, “Chandi, when is your next show? We will fully support you and provide publicity.” I was motivated and started thinking of a newsworthy concept for another show.
At that point, two of the hotel’s lobby musicians, Priyanthi and Raja walked into my office with a request. They were the best husband and wife musician duo in Sri Lanka. They were on a contract with the hotel for one year. “Chandi, we have been offered an excellent contract to perform in a five-star hotel in the Middle East. We are wondering if you would be kind enough to release us from the Galadari contract, six months before the contract expires.”
I thought for a minute, and then said, ” I will release you, but on one condition. You have to perform free for our next major show, which I will produce during your last week in Colombo.” When they asked about the concept of the show, I said, “It will be a grand farewell for both of you. I will get a big line-up of top western musicians to sing at the show. Shall we call your show ‘A Farewell to Priyanthi & Raja’?”
Priyanthi and Raja were overjoyed with my suggestion, but were a bit concerned that their fans would think that they would be leaving Sri Lanka for good. I said, “That’s excellent for promoting the show! No need to lie to your fans, but please keep them guessing. That way we can make your show one of the biggest.” And that’s what happened.
For this show we also included a snack pack and a beverage per ticket holder for the intermission, and doubled the price of the ticket to Rs. 200 (which was a good price for a show in 1987). In spite of having a full banquet hall of over 1,000 seats pre-sold, just before the start of the show, our banquet team had to arrange an additional 200 seats just outside the hall. We kept the ballroom doors open. I arranged the kitchen to increase the quantity of snacks. I requested the Food & Beverage Controller to print extra tickets and to sell those at the entrance to the last-minute fans who were eagerly waiting outside the hotel with the hope of getting their final glimpse of their favourite musicians, prior to them leaving Sri Lanka.
A couple of months later I read in local newspapers that one of the hotel musicians and the most recognizable TV Anchor of Sri Lanka, Noeline Honter, had recently won a few important awards for her contribution to the entertainment and broadcasting industries. I immediately called Kenneth Honter, Noeline’s manager and husband, with an idea for a felicitation show to celebrate the multi-faceted achievements of this remarkable lady
Kenneth was a marketer and ad agent, so I did not have to persuade him. We immediately planned the show together. We themed my third stage show as the producer, ‘Noeline… a Celebration’. I produced it and Kenneth worked as the stage manager. After that we collaborated in the same roles for several other shows till I left Sri Lanka for good in 1994. ‘Noeline… a Celebration’ was equally successful as ‘A Farewell to Priyanthi & Raja’. Both shows had a line-up of performers who were the best of the best in Sri Lanka in the western music scene.
The day after Noeline’s show, November 16, 1987, Colombo 2000 broke its previous record for a Monday (the slowest day of the week). The trick was, a ‘Star Party’ we quickly organized for all musicians who
performed at the show a day before. We placed a small newspaper ad with one line: “Meet the Stars of Noeline’s Show, at COLOMBO 2000 Tonight!”. The fans stormed Colombo 2000 to listen to the singing of over 20 stars and mingle with them.
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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