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DUDLEY SENANAYAKE: COLOSSUS AMONG POLITICIANS
(Excerpted from the Memoirs of Senior DIG (Rtd.) Edward Gunawardene)
His visit to my residence: About two weeks after I had shifted residence and with only a week to pass for election day, I was to experience one of the most pleasant and rewarding days of my life.
About 6 O’clock one evening the telephone rang. The caller was Alex Dedigama. He said he was with Mr. Dudley Senanayake at the resthouse and the latter would be pleased to meet me. I very politely told Alex to explain to Mr. Senanayake that it would not look nice for me to meet him at the resthouse and that he was most welcome in my humble home. I also told him that several other candidates including Kalugalle and Ratne Deshapriya Senanayake have seen me at home as this is my official residence. Alex promised to convey my wish to Mr. Senanayake.
As a precaution I telephoned Salgado’s and requested the manager to prepare two glasses of freshly squeezed orange juice. Chandradasa (my servant) brought this in a thermos flask. No sooner Chandradasa arrived, the telephone rang again. It was the great man himself. He said that he would be at my residence in five minutes. I instructed Chandradasa to be ready to open the gate. When a car arrived at the gate I prepared myself to meet the special visitor.
As the car entered the premises I recognized the 4 Sri Series Triumph Herald. It was driven by Dudley Senanayake himself. Seated beside him was Alex Dedigama, a cousin who resembled Dudley very much. After Dudley and Alex sat down Dudley, as if to put me at ease, started filling his pipe saying, “I hope you don’t mind me smoking.” “I too smoke, Sir, Peacock is my brand”, was my response.
Apparently he had heard of my Peradeniya days. I was surprised when he told me that he had skimmed The Students Council Magazine edited by me. Joe Karunaratne who was his private secretary had briefed him about me and even given him a copy of the 1956 Union Magazine.
When Chandradasa served the orange juice, Dudley looked at me and asked what the drink was. When I told him that it was fresh orange juice and he smiled saying “good”. I told him that his brother, Robert, had been a regular visitor and fresh orange juice was his preferred drink too. He then told me that Robert had briefed him about the meetings he had with me; and how my servant too had been courteous and accommodating when I was not at home.
It was only after about 15 minutes that Dudley asked me about what was happening. “Mr.Gunawardena, what is this talk that you are going to be transferred?” Without batting an eyelid I replied, ” I am ready to go anywhere Sir, be it Jaffna or Moneragala. I have to just pack my suitcase and go.” He laughed. Alex Dedigama who was silent all the while butted in, “They know it Dudley. Even Kalugalla admires this man’s guts. Edward has a good word among the lawyers too.”
He had been well briefed about the goings on in Kegalle; and he appeared to be particularly pleased about the impartial role of the police. He had even heard of the incident where two children flying a green kite had been assaulted and the manner in which I had dealt with Tissa Wijeyaratne. Apparently Alex Dedigama had related the incident to him.
This first meeting of mine with Dudley Senanayake which was to lead to a close relationship with not only him but also his brother Robert and the latter’s children. This remains remarkably fresh in my memory. As I write this 45 years later I can visualize Dudley dressed in a green casual shirt, smoking a large curved pipe seated close to me. “Don’t be discouraged by threats. Don’t be intimidated. Just do your duty,” his parting words that evening still ring in my ears.
Meeting Dudley on Election Day
The day of the elections was relatively quiet. By the time the polls began in the morning apart from police presence at every polling station in the district all the mobile police patrols were operating smoothly. Apart from visiting a few polling stations in the Dedigama, Kegalle and Rambukkana, electorates most of my time was spent in the Operations Room that I had set up in the office of the HQI Kegalle.
The reports received at the Ops. Room by noon indicated that most of the candidates had been seen visiting polling booths. Only a few minor incidents had been reported by this time. A drunk had been arrested by IP Pilapitiya, OIC Bulathkohupitiya, and locked up in a cell. Being busy with the election duties he had not been able to produce this man before a doctor. Dr. N.M. Perera had casually dropped in at the station as he had received information that one of his supporters was in custody. When he saw the true position he had been more than satisfied with the action taken by the OIC.
When I visited the Warakapola Police Station IP Shanton Abeygoonawardena was there. He had been posted to this station by Police Headquarters because the OIC, IP Wijetilleke had been the OIC of Nittambuwa and had been very close to Prime Minister Mrs. Sirima Bandaranaike.
Abeygoonawardena told me that Mr. Dudley Senanayake and his brother Robert were touring the electorate together. After visiting the Warakapola station I drove to the thalaguli shop of Jinadasa, a man with a Groucho moustache who was well known to many. I wanted to eat a thalaguli and drink a ginger tea. There was a jeep halted outside. When my car was stopped behind this jeep, Themis the driver got down from the jeep. He recognized me and told me, “Sir, Hamu athule innawa”. This man whom I addressed as Themis aiya as a child was from my village, Battaramulla. I waited outside until Dudley came out.
As he came out with his brother followed by Jinadasa I saluted and greeted him. Robert who was quite friendly with me having met me often at my residence smiled broadly and tried to introduce me to his brother saying, “Dudley you must meet Eddie”. “I met him only a few days ago”, was Dudley’s response. I chatted with them briefly. They were quite pleased with the police arrangements. Whilst parting Robert told me that they were operating from the Ambepussa Resthouse.
Cellular telephones had not come into existence at that time. After a thalaguli, vadai and a cup of ginger tea at Jinadasa’s I was able to skip lunch and leisurely tour the district. At about four in the afternoon I was able to get to my residence, change into a sarong and relax. All reports indicated that voting had virtually ended. The percentage poll was appreciably high in all the electorates. I telephoned the Kegalle Ops Room and told the duty officer to inform me when the ballot boxes started coming into the Technical College, the counting centre for the district.
After a shower and a cup of tea I went to sleep having instructed Chandradasa to put me up if there was anything urgent. When I contacted the Ops. Room I was told that all arrangements were in place at the counting centre; and the counting proper is likely to begin after 10 p.m. A call from my friend Leel Gunasekera, the Returning Officer confirmed this.
Feeling completely relaxed, I told Chandradasa to prepare a freshly laundered light uniform — shirt and slacks; and a light dinner, before leaving for the Planters Club for a game of billiards. The few of my friends who were there were surprised to see me in such a relaxed mood. Sipping a fresh lime juice I played a few frames of snooker with Dr. Clarence Muttiah. At about 9 p.m. I received a call on my Walkie Talkie that the postal vote count had begun; and I decided to leave the club. Whilst leaving I instructed the Ops Room to keep me informed of the arrival of Messrs Kalugalle, Dudley Senanayake and Dr. N.M. Perera at the counting Centre.
After I had dinner and got into uniform I received a call from the Ops. Room to say that Mr. Ratne Deshapriya Senanayake had arrived at the Dedigama counting centre with several people. I immediately telephoned the Returning Officer, Leel Gunasekera, and he told me that only the accredited counting agents and the candidate could be present. Accordingly I instructed HQI Kegalle to evict all unauthorized persons from the counting rooms. No sooner I entered the Technical College premises the HQI told me that the rule enabling only authorized persons from entering the counting rooms was being strictly enforced. He also told me that Mr. Dudley Senanayake and his brother Robert were also accompanied by two or three unauthorized persons and they had not been allowed in.
I did a brisk tour of all the rooms where the counting was taking place. With the minimum of people allowed there was plenty of breathing space in the rooms. The candidates too appeared to be happy that unwanted persons had been kept out. With even the police on duty at the counting centres debarred from moving in and out, even I felt somewhat embarrassed to be entering and exiting the counting rooms.
When I entered the Dedigama electorate counting centre Dudley and Robert were having a chat with Dharmasiri Senanayake, the brother of Deshapriya. “Good thing Eddie that you have restricted entry”, said Robert. “You can be assured Edda will always do the right thing”, added Dharmasiri who was a Peradeniya buddy of mine. He was undoubtedly one of the most efficient and honest Cabinet Ministers of the seventies. I called him Dharme and he called me Edda. That was our relationship, With his early demise the country lost a honourable politician.
Having driven round the Kegalle town and having dropped in at home for a cup of tea I returned to the counting centre at about 1.00 a.m. With the results coming in and the indications being a defeat for Mrs. Bandaranaike’s Government the crowd outside the counting centre had thinned out. I walked straight upstairs. On the corridor outside the Dedigama counting room, seated on the balustrade and leaning against a pillar, to my utter surprise was Dudley Senanayake.
Casually dressed, with a muffler round his neck he was smoking a pipe. Apparently he had just come out of the counting room. I saluted him. “Hullo, is everything peaceful?” Just then Robert who was his counting agent walked out of the room. After greeting me, a somewhat worried looking man turned to his brother and said, “Dudley it doesn’t look too good”. By this time I was seated on the balustrade beside Dudley.
It was indeed a tense and closely contested election. The comment that Robert made was after having observed how the count was going. At that moment I was the nearest person to the two brothers. The immediate response of Dudley to Robert’s apprehensions was certainly not a studied statement for political gain. It was a soft, low voiced conversation between two brothers and I happened to be a listener. The words that came out of Dudley spontaneously were, “Robert, if that is the wish of the people, we have to accept it.”
These were great words from a great man. They are greater still because they were not made to the public but out of his heart to his only brother; and I was the only other man who heard this! They were indeed words that brought out the true democrat in Dudley.
Celebrations at Woodlands
The Dedigama result was officially announced at about 2 a.m. Dudley had won convincingly. Not only had he won his seat, the results that had come in indicated that the UNP had won the largest number of seats as a single party. Although the UNP did not have an absolute majority it was clear that only Dudley could have formed a coalition government.
As I escorted him out of the counting centre the crowd had thinned out. The supporters of the ruling party that had formed the bulk of the crowd had naturally left dejected. The lead picture in the Lake House papers on the following day was Dudley leaving the counting centre with the ASP Kegalle.
From the counting centre Dudley and Robert went to the residence of Winston Wickremasinghe, a prominent Kegalle lawyer who was a friend of the Senanayake family. I too followed in my Peugeot 203 driven by my orderly PC Dharmasena. Robert who was looking jubilant came up to me and thanked me for being with them. I told him that my responsibility was not over and that an escort would be provided. I also told him that I myself would be travelling in the lead police jeep to Woodlands.
“Eddie, you must join us at Kiribath. We will follow the police jeep”, were the softly spoken words of a tired but spirited Robert. Whilst waiting for the jeep with a Sub-Inspector and a Sergeant and constable, Winston came up to my car and insisted that I have a coffee before leaving for Woodlands. Being a local lawyer he was especially courteous when he spoke to me. At that time an Assistant Superintendent of Police commanded much respect among lawyers and Judges.
With the roads almost empty the journey to Woodlands was smooth and fast. At 5 a.m. we reached our destination. At the gate was a police jeep with several policemen inside. On seeing the signal lights of the jeep I was in, an officer got down from the jeep that was at the entrance. I recognized him as ASP Gamini Jayasinghe who was the ASP Colombo Traffic. The few people who were gathered on the road opposite Woodlands lit crackers and shouted ‘Jayawewa’.
Robert’s wife, Neela, and their children, Devinda, Ranjani, Ranjit, Lala and Rukman were in the verandah near the porch. Carolis, the faithful valet of Dudley dressed in a white shirt and white sarong, was beaming with smiles. Ranjit Wijewardene the Chairman of Lake House was also there.
After the initial greetings and hugs they all moved into the sitting room. By that time Gamini Jayasinghe also had moved towards the porch with an Inspector. I started chatting with them, enjoying a smoke. According to Gamini the victory of the UNP had not been anticipated by Police Headquarters. Before I could finish my cigarette, Carolis walked up to the two of us and said, “Gunawardena mahattayata hamu kathakaranawa”. I fetched my cap from the jeep and walked in.
The entire family was round the oval dining table laughing, chatting and eating kiribath. No chairs were to be seen near the table. They were all standing. The few pieces of furniture were untidy and in disarray. Indeed it was typical of a bachelor home.
As soon as Robert saw me he turned to Dudley and for all to hear exclaimed, “Dudley, here comes Eddie. The man who had to bear the brunt of the problems”.
The children also surrounded me whilst Dudley himself gave me a plate with a piece of kiribath and some katta sambol. Rukman was a small boy who was a silent observer.
Devinda spoke to me quite freely. He even told me how his father used to mention the long evenings he spent seated in the verandah of my Kegalle residence. He had not failed to mention that I had a servant who always served him an orange juice! At 6 O’clock I walked up to the Prime Minister-designate and sought his permission to leave as I had to get back to station. His reaction was a visibly emotional ‘Thank you’. As I came out to the porch I met Gamini and told him that I was getting back to Kegalle.
It was nearly nine in the morning when I reached Kegalle. After a quick bath and a cup of tea I went straight to the Ops. Room. The HQI was there with Sub-Inspector Cumaranatunga. Not a single incident or election offence had been reported. I instructed HQI to send an ‘Incident Nil’ report to Police Headquarters and disband the Ops. Room.
Locked up in a cell was a solitary elderly man. Coming out of a polling station in Hettimulla he had been arrested by a mobile patrol for the possession of a knife. I questioned the man and he said he always carried that knife to cut arecanut for his chew of betel. His betel stained mouth and teeth, showed that he was an inveterate ‘bulath hapaya’. I ordered his release and returned the knife with the advice to file the point off. I casually remarked to the HQI that the police should not act foolishly chasing after such trivialities!
The only unpleasant thing that happened after nearly 36 hours of smooth going where all the police arrangements of Kegalle district worked out without a hitch was that two days after the polls, even before a government had been formed, my explanation was called for by Police Headquarters for leaving station and accompanying Dudley Senanayake to Woodlands. I ignored this; and that was it!
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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