Features
STARTING OFF WITH A BANG! – Part 34
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
Having started as the new Food & Beverage Manager and Executive Chef of Hotel Ceysands on October 1, 1977, I was on a fast track to re-organize my departments. As I had exactly one month to organize the re-opening of these departments, I had no time to waste. I worked around the clock and went to my apartment only to get 
four or five hours of sleep well past midnight every day. Having gained two years’ experience in a similar position at Coral Gardens Hotel, I felt fully prepared for my new job.
A Hotel in two Towns
The location of Hotel Ceysands was unique. A hotel on a beach strip located between sea water and fresh water was romantic and provided a lot of opportunities for a variety of water sports. All guest areas were on the river bank on the sea side in the town of Bentota. The ancient name of this town was derived from a mythical story which claims a demon named ‘Bem’ ruled the ‘tota’ or river bank.
All employee areas, the main entrance to the hotel property and the security post were on the river bank on the land side in another town – Aluthgama (new town). This town had a small center with some interesting shops, a bustling local market and a busy bus station. Although not as beautiful as Bentota, Aluthgama was active and generally hectic. The most famous attraction near this town is the famous Buddhist temple – Kande Vihara (temple on the hill). It was built in the year 1734 and has been formally recognised by the government as an archaeological site.
The architecture of Hotel Ceysands was not as grand as its neighbour – Bentota Beach Hotel, but was designed to suit the shape of the available land. A major challenge for the new managing agents – Walkers Tours and the hotel re-opening management team was that the poor interior design had no clear concept. During the short period of time available to restart the tourist season in 1977, only some urgent work was done, enough to create a more welcoming first impression. The major refurbishing was planned after six months, during the 1978 tourist off season.
Learning Complex Cultures
I spent a short time to quickly familiarize myself with the culture of the area, that of the company which owned Ceysands – Ceylinco Limited and new managing agents – Walkers Tours and their owner – John Keells Group.
Ceylinco was a well-established group of companies, led by its second generation of owners headed by Mr. Lalith Kotelawala as the Chairman. He had built the renamed Ceylinco into a major company (in later years expanded to have over 500 subsidiary companies). Their head office was at the then tallest building in Sri Lanka – Ceylinco House in Colombo. Ceylinco owned and operated three hotels – Ceylinco Hotel in Colombo with the famous 14th floor restaurant Akasa Kade, San Michele Island Resort by Bolgoda Lake and Hotel Ceysands.
In 1977, a majority of the management team of Ceysands were managers previously recruited by Ceylinco, and whose loyalty was clearly with Ceylinco Group. These managers included the Hotel Manager – Alan Silva, Boats & Maintenance Manager – Mendis, and the Executive Housekeeper – Malini Kotelawala (an aunt of the Chairman and a cousin of the third Prime Minister of Ceylon – General Sir John Kotelawala). The General Manager of the hotel, Captain Wicks, a senior executive of Walkers Tours had a challenge. He realized that he must gradually encourage the loyalty and support of these managers who were used to a different style of leadership. Not everybody liked too many changes.
Two years later, in 1979, I befriended Mr. Lalith Kotelawala and his wife, Sicille who occasionally stayed at Hotel Swanee which they loved. I was the Manager of that Keells hotel at that time. In 1981, by then, as a corporate executive, I took over the management of Ceylinco Hotel on behalf of John Keells group and re-organized the hotel. Mr. Lalith Kotelawala once told me that, “It is best that my company relies on professionals in your business to manage our hotels.”
Walkers Tours, then the leading tour operator and hotel management company was founded in 1969. A visionary businessman and lawyer, Mr. Sriyantha Senaratne had been the Managing Director since 1971. When Walkers Tours was acquired by John Keells Group of companies in 1972, he continued in that position. Captain Wicks enjoyed reporting to him. I met Mr. Senaratne once at Hotel Ceysands during our pre re-opening period. I had a brief chat with this soft-spoken gentleman. I was impressed to hear that it was he who led the commencement of the Habarana Village hotel project. He was also passionate about tourism development in the Maldives. I was pleased when the new uniforms, material and supplies arrived with the logo. It was very similar to opening of a new hotel.
John Keells Group, the owning company of Walkers Tours was founded in Ceylon by Britishers in the 1870s. It was initially set up as a manufacturer of tea and essential foods. During the 1970s after the then socialist government nationalized tea estates, the company mainly focused on new opportunities in tourism. Under the leadership of then Chairman Mark Bostock, John Keells became a diverse group of companies. He once told a group of executives including me, that in the early 1970s, he was invited to a meeting by then Prime Minister of Sri Lanka who initiated the nationalizing of tea estates. He said, “The Madam Prime Minister told me that tea is not the only business one can do when a rich company has a multi-talented and experienced team. Mrs. B. planted some seeds in my mind!” Today, John Keells Holdings PLC (JKH) is Sri Lanka’s largest listed company on the Colombo Stock Exchange. It is also the undisputed leader of the tourism and hospitality industries in the country.
Planning, Developing, and Training
In my planning work I focused mainly on human resources, new menus, supplies, logistics (in coordination with the boat department), food and beverage controls. Filling all job vacancies in the kitchen, restaurant and bars, plus arranging on the job training for new employees was a top priority. As time was limited, I did some quick ‘train the trainer’ sessions for all the supervisors in my departments. After that, I directed them to devote considerable amount of time in training the new recruits. I spent time checking their skills after the training.
Before the new management took over the hotel, Ceysands did not have many large buffet products. Based on tour groups requests, I re-trained the kitchen brigade to prepare large buffets for all dinners. To strengthen the kitchen, I personally selected two excellent kitchen interns from the Ceylon Hotel School. These students – Mallawarchchi and Lokuge were only a few years younger to me. They both were eager to acquire knowledge and dreamt of becoming Executive Chefs in the future. I became their mentor and inspiration. They were a great addition to my team. Two of them helped in my efforts to re-train the kitchen brigade which included highly experienced cooks and newcomers.
I devoted a considerable amount of time to do all menu planning, requisitioning, seasoning all main courses, doing all buffet decorations and arrangements, as well as all the à la carte cooking. My background in visual art including sculpture continued to be useful in culinary arts. I made sure that appropriate assistants under-studied me on all these tasks. The experience I gained at the Coral Gardens Hotels helped me to build good team spirit among the kitchen brigade and the young teams who worked at the restaurant and bars. We worked very hard and felt that we were fully ready to re-open the hotel by the end of October, 1977.
Coach loads of tourists arrived on Walkers Tours buses soon after the tourist season began in early November, 1977. As predicted, the occupancy shot up to 100% within days. Being managed by the largest tour operator of the island meant that the hotel management team did not have to worry about any marketing and sales. Captain Wicks was a little worried that something would go wrong as we hardly had enough time to train all the new employees.
My strategy of recruiting very young service employees with big smiles and great attitudes, rather than experienced employees from other hotels, worked well. One can train employees basic service skills fairly quickly, but no one can be trained to smile and have the right service attitude. The tourists and tour leaders loved our service staff and the quality and variety of food we presented. We certainly commenced the season with a bang!
Captain Wicks was impressed with the performances of my teams during season commencement and said, “Chandana, you are a breath of fresh air.” That was motivating. I soon became his right-hand man. We brainstormed about the entertainment and activities calendar to coordinate with the seven-dinner buffet package I had developed.
As most of our guests stayed at Ceysands for two weeks, it was essential that we provided a wide variety of entertainment and activities. I learnt a lot from Captain Wicks about organization, logistics and public relations, and he learnt from me about hospitality operations. We both were quick learners. Alan was supportive of our innovative ideas and plans. At the age 23, I was the youngest among seven departmental heads and executives of Ceysands, but was the most experienced in terms of hospitality operations. Captain Wicks was 20 years older than me and Allan was 15 years older than me.
“I am told by the European tour leaders that the perfect resort is where the management team works and plays while making the guests happy” Captain Wicks told Alan and me. “Of course, Captain, that is right. Let’s make Ceysands the most active hotel in the south coast of Sri Lanka!”, I contributed optimism to the vision. The team agreed on that goal.
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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