Lanka Sathosa Chairman says he was neither sacked nor was there a ‘rice scandal’

by Suresh Perera

The purported “sacking” of the Lanka Sathosa Chairman over what was described as a “scandal” in the procurement of rice captured intense media attention, but Nushad Perera, who headed the country’s biggest retail chain, dismissed the claims as “bunkum”.

“I was neither sacked as Chairman nor was there a ‘rice deal’, as claimed”, he said last week.

He said that he resigned on December 31, 2020, to take up his new appointment as Chairman of the Sri Lanka Standards Institution (SLSI) as the President wanted him to build up the national standards body to broad-base benchmarking the country’s export sector.

As a marketing professional, Perera earlier served for two decades as a member of the senior management team of Dialog Group and was also the founding CEO of Dialog TV.

He was appointed Chairman of Lanka Sathosa and the affiliated CWE (Cooperative Wholesale Establishment) by the President on January 1, 2020.

“I opted to resign as CWE Chairman on November 30 to dedicate more time to Lanka Sathosa to keep the wheels turning to ensure a steady supply of consumer essentials through the retail chain’s 416 outlets especially at a time the country is grappling with a pandemic”, Perera explained.

“We have to be fully operational to face the challenge”, he underscored.

As Chairman of the two institutions, he had to also attend board meetings every two weeks, which made it difficult to cope with the workload.

He said that he didn’t accept a remuneration as the head of the CWE. At Lanka Sathosa, he was paid Rs. 100,000 per month but largely used his private vehicle.

Asked about the Lanka Sathosa Chairman’s exit, Trade Minister Bandula Gunawardena said there was nothing amiss as the heads of the SLSI and EDB (Export Development Board) were also replaced.

“The heads of three institutions under my Ministry were changed in keeping with national priorities”, he told The Sunday Island.

Asked about allegations of irregularities in rice imports on the Lanka Sathosa Chairman’s watch, the Minister said that such claims were baseless. “There was nothing of that sort – it’s a figment of imagination”.

“The Chairman alone cannot decide on procurements”, Perera stressed.

There is a six-member procurement committee, including the Chairman, Secretary to the Trade Ministry and a treasury representative, which decides on purchases. This is followed by another three-member technical committee which evaluates the quality of the commodities to be procured, he explained.

In the case of rice, purchases are made locally by the procurement committees on the basis of 750 metric tons, which works out to one week’s requirement, Perera outlined.

Asked how a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Marketing (FCIM), who was named ‘CIM Marketer of the Year’ in 2001 and awarded the coveted ‘Global Brand Leadership Award’ at the Asia Brand Congress in 2007, could fit into a scientific body, he said the SLSI can be better marketed as a productive tool to the private sector.

“We need to take this national certification body to the private sector in a big way as the quality of all commodities including fruits and vegetables will have to be SLSI certified for the export market”, he said.

“There’s a lot of work to be done there after I assume duties on January 1, 2021”, Perera added.

To be appointed Sathosa Chairman is akin to being asked to sit on a smoking volcano, industry officials quipped.

Whatever the dispensation, there’s bound to be tremendous pressure from various ‘interest groups’ eager to make a quick buck, they said.

Under the former UNP regime, it was like a game of musical chairs with heads rolling so often that the question jocularly asked was ‘who would be this week’s chairman?’, they recalled.

There were a few Chairmen with integrity, the officials recounted, referring to renowned marketing expert, Dr. Rohantha Athukorala, who collected his laptop, flagged down a three-wheeler and pushed off home (leaving behind his official vehicle) when asked to do what was considered unethical during Minister Rishad Bathiudeen’s time.

It’s a case of old wine in new bottles, they laughed. “Jockeys may come and go but the old horses in the stables know how the cookie crumbles”.