Features
RESEARCH AT 16 FIVE-STAR HOTELS – PART ‘A’
CONFESSIONS OF A GLOBAL GYPSY
By Dr. Chandana (Chandi) Jayawardena DPhil
President – Chandi J. Associates Inc. Consulting, Canada
Founder & Administrator – Global Hospitality Forum
chandij@sympatico.ca
I was very pleased when in 1984 the University of Surrey (UoS) in the UK approved ‘Food and Beverage operations in the context of five-star London hotels’ as my M.Sc. dissertation topic. As directed by my supervisor, Professor Richard Kotas, I read all of the books – cover to cover and journal articles ever written in English about Food and Beverage management and operations. That took over two months. I was also directed by him to answer three questions, to provide context in my research undertaking:
-
= What are luxury hotels?
-
=What is the history of British luxury hotels?
-
=How does Food and Beverage management play a vital role in London five-star hotels?
What are Luxury Hotels?
Many have attempted to define a luxury hotel. The word ‘luxury’ has different meanings to different people depending on their experiences and expectations. In many classification guides in 1984, words such as ‘de-luxe’, five-star’, ‘first-class’ or ‘exclusive’ were used by hoteliers and writers.
Some felt that the large size of a hotel was a disadvantage for the hoteliers to maintain true ‘five-star’ standards. In 1984, none of the largest 18 hotels (with between 1,029 and 530 rooms) in UK, were five-star ranked. The average size of the 21 five-star hotels in UK, was 261 rooms (ranging from 509 to 86 rooms). In 1984, the average age of these 21 hotels was 55 years. A majority (16) of them were in London.
The 16 five-star London hotels had a total of 48 food and beverage outlets (an average of three per hotel). Average banqueting capacity for sit-down meals was 406. Grosvenor House had the largest banqueting operation able to accommodate 1,500 guests for a sit-down meal.
Most countries in the world use some form of hotel classification system, out of which 65 systems in 1984 were enforced by the public sector. In UK, in 1984, the key hotel grading schemes were carried out by private organizations. The most famous and respected hotel grading scheme was done by the Automobile Association (AA). In my research, I found that up to 1984, nothing academically significant had been written about the British hotel classification schemes or the five-star hotel grading. That gap provided me an opportunity.
What is the History of British Luxury Hotels?
During the eleventh century, a few monastic institutions as well as private homes in Britain were used to provide accommodation to travellers. The English inn had probably originated from the practice of receiving travellers by private householders. Religion played a vital part determining people’s habits in consumption of food and beverages. Towards the late fourteenth century, solid-stone built structures replaced the sheds operated as ale-houses and taverns in the provinces and inns in London.
With the popularity of wagons and other wheeled transport towards the end of the 16th century, a larger scale Tudor Inn operation replaced the Medieval Inn. The eighteenth century was the turning point for gastronomy in Britain. Influenced by major cities in continental Europe, such as Paris, Vienna, as well as the main cities of Switzerland, the word ‘Hotel’ became common in Britain after 1760.
Proper hotels, with managers, receptionists, porters and page-boys, gradually became common in Britain only at the beginning of the nineteenth century. Large British hotels such as The Grand, The Great Eastern, The Euston, The Charing Cross, The Great Western Royal, and The Grosvenor were developed in that era. One common feature of these hotels was that all of them were located near major railway terminals in London.
The opening of The Langham on Regent Street, London in 1865, is generally considered the origin of true luxury hotels in UK. Bailey’s Hotel was opened eleven years after that in 1876, and the world-famous London hotel, The Savoy, opened in 1889. Around the same time, a few luxury hotels were opened in well-known resort cities and towns. In 1984, the oldest British hotel with a five-star rating was The Imperial in Torquay, which was opened in 1866.
Using all British Connections for M.Sc. Research
The British hotel industry looked to London for the latest trends and London emerged easily as the trend setter of the industry. Within the five-star London hotels, the food and beverage departments appeared to be the most complex and versatile. In answering my third and most important research question – ‘How does food and beverage management play a vital role in London five-star hotels?’ I decided to work or observe in all 16 five-star hotels in London, and interview dozens of relevant managers.
During the first half of the twentieth century, most five-star hotels around the world did not make much profits from their food and beverage operations. From an economic stand point it was important to attempt to break even. More emphasis was given to rooms, because this was where the money was made. The concept of food and beverage manager or director was relatively new in the world. This concept was developed only in the 1960s by major hotel chains in USA, combining the technical know-how with the business administration skills, aiming to optimize profits.
The food and beverage manager/director of a five-star hotel usually was responsible for nearly half the hotel’s employees (in 1984, in London it was 48%) and administered a range of complex departments such as kitchens, restaurants, bars, banqueting, events, room service, stewarding, and at times, mini bars, as well as, food and beverage controls. Having gained experience as an executive chef and food and beverage manager of two small resort hotels in Sri Lanka in mid-1970s, I focused on securing the position of the food and beverage manager/director of a large five-star international hotel, by mid-1980s.
I developed a one-page research questionnaire which was mailed to all 16 five-star hotels in London. I used my previously established contacts in UK to ensure that I received prompt and positive responses from each hotel. For my research interviews, I used 14 open ended questions. I loved this research undertaking, and was passionate about it. I knew that it would help me to reach my next career goal. I wanted to do much more than what was required of me by the university. I was hungry for useful knowledge.
I commenced my research interviews with people I knew well. I travelled to Cosham and Portsmouth to interview a couple of hospitality experts who supported me during my ILO/UNDP fellowship in 1982. I also contacted two Senior Lecturers of the South Devon Technical College, who had presented a two-week Hotel Management seminar in Sri Lanka in 1982. Having attended this seminar, I became friends with them.
“Chandi, why don’t you take a break from your hectic schedule in London and visit Dr. David Dann and I in Torquay? You both spend a weekend at my home and try my wife, Clair’s British cooking skills”, Tim Hornsey invited us over the telephone. Torquay is a beautiful seaside town in Devon, with numerous archaeological remains dating back to pre-historic times. In addition to hosting us, Tim and David and their wives took us to see The Imperial. They also arranged for me to interview the renowned hotelier who managed it, Harry Murray.
Using Part-time Work for Research
My readings, research interviews and informal discussions provided an enormous amount of data pertaining to my research topic. In addition, I collected many brochures, menus, wine cards, promotional material, control documents etc. from most of the London five-star hotels. These were carefully analysed prior to writing the dissertation. However, mid-way during the research activity, I felt strongly that in order to obtain insight into the actual hotel operations, it would be ideal to work in different capacities in various hotels.
I continued to work at The Dorchester as a part-time banquet waiter. Due to that valuable experience in the best hotel in UK, I was able to find part-time work in two other five-star hotels on Park Lane – London Hilton and InterContinental London. I also began working as a part-time banquet waiter at Claridge’s, which had opened in the nineteenth century. Doing similar work in four five-star hotels concurrently, provided me an excellent opportunity to compare and contrast their standards in food and beverage operations and banqueting.
Although I liked the old-world charm of Claridge’s and The Dorchester, I found that the food and beverage operations of the newer (originally) American chain hotels, InterContinental and Hilton, were far more efficient. Having previously worked at two InterContinental hotels in two other countries (Sri Lanka in 1973 and Hong Kong in 1981), I was familiar with their standards of operation in banquets. I was most impressed with the London Hilton, which had the most efficiently managed banquet operation in London.
As the demand on me to work as a banquet waiter in London increased, I became very busy. Often, I did three-hour shifts for meal services only. For such a short shift, I was paid only £8.40. On some days, I did three shifts in three hotels for breakfast, lunch and dinner. In between, I did research interviews. I became keen in gaining different types of five-star hotel experiences in London at a higher level.
Using Management Trainee Positions for Research
I spoke with my friend, Mr. Wilfred Weragoda, the Food & Beverage Controller of The Dorchester. Based on my new request, he arranged for me to spend two weeks in his department as a Food & Beverage Controls Trainee. In addition to learning different aspects of Food and Beverage operations, that brief exposure opened new doors for me.
One day, I interviewed W. A. Lipscombe, Managing Director of Hallway Hotels in his office in London. He was a friend of Mark Bostock, then Chairman of John Keells Group, who arranged my first Management Trainee assignment in UK with Trust House Forte in 1979. Due to their friendship, I was able to secure with good pay an excellent management trainee position in a 500-room five-star hotel in London. Lipscombe told me, “Chandi, hotels in my company are not five-star. Therefore, I will use a good contact of mine – The Managing Director of The Churchill, to arrange six weeks exposure in six departments for you. I will tell Mark that I did you a favour.”
The Churchill experience was excellent. I spent a week each in six departments – purchasing, receiving bay and stores, food and beverage controls and accounts department, reservations, banquets, restaurants and room service, and finally, kitchen. I also did a few research interviews, there. The most useful interview was given to me on my last day at The Churchill, by the company’s Managing Director, G. Webb. I was also exposed to The Churchill’s four-star sister hotel in London, The Montcalm.
I was encouraged with the success of my Management Trainee assignments at The Dorchester and The Churchill, in the context of enhancing my graduate research and acquiring experience and knowledge. These exposures also improved my résumé. With that enthusiasm, I approached my contacts at Trust House Forte, who arranged a short Management Trainee assignment for me at the 85-year-old five-star, The Hyde Park Hotel. There, I worked directly under its veteran General Manager, A. Grosso, who also gave me an opportunity to conduct one of my longest and useful research interviews.
Soon after that I was sent to the Trust House Forte Group’s flagship hotel, Grosvenor House, for a couple of weeks. I was pleased with this opportunity as Grosvenor House had the largest five-star Food and Beverage operations in UK. I did a few more research interviews there. One of those I interviewed was Ben Davis, the Food & Beverage Manager. In 1990’s both Ben and I held the same position in the Caribbean, as the General Manager of Trust House Forte’s 360-room five-star hotel – Jamaica Pegasus/Forte Grand.
I enjoyed full-day orientations at four five-star hotels in London at the commencement of each of my Management Trainee assignments. The most memorable orientation was at The Dorchester, due to one gentleman who made a big, positive impact. It was Udo Schlentrich, General Manager of The Dorchester. He was the only General Manager who met each group of new employees during their orientation. This Austrian-born hotelier trained in the best two hotel schools in the world (Lausanne in Switzerland and Cornell in USA), said something during the orientation, which remained permanently in my mind.
Udo Schlentrich said, “Thank you for joining the best British hotel – The Dorchester. Ladies and gentleman, as the General Manager I am just the conductor of the orchestra, but it is all of you who provide the music. Please do your best, to make our customer happy.” After that he had his lunch at the staff cafeteria with the new employees in the orientation. He sat next to me and had a friendly chat over lunch. He also gave me a research interview. Udo was a big inspiration to me. In later years, like me, at the hight of his hotel career he did a doctorate and became a professor.
The rest of my career, whenever there was an orientation in a hotel which I managed, I thought of what Udo Schlentrich did at the Dorchester in 1984, and I did something similar. The best practices one learns in the real-world trumps academic learning in universities.
Will continue in next week’s column: ‘Research at 16 Five-star Hotels – Part ‘B”.
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 . )
US sports envoys to Lanka to champion youth development
Rahuman questions sudden cancellation of leave of CEB employees
