Features
Working as an ASP in various police districts countrywide
Excerpted from the memoirs of Senior DIG (Retd.)
Kingsley Wickramasuriya
Superintendent of Police Lionel Senanayake was in charge of the Gampaha Police Division. The Police District of Gampaha consisted of eight police stations including Attanagalla where the Prime Minister, Sirimavo Bandaranaike was residing. It appeared that my predecessor Mr. Dharmadasa de Silva had got into some sort of a problem with the PM and that is why I had to replace him.
Gampaha was a very heavy district teeming with crimes. Many a time I had to be pulled out of bed to visit a scene of a ‘D Report’ case where the ASP must visit and give directions. Murders and robberies were some of those cases. With all that I kept the district on its toes with my surprise visits by day and by night.
Veyangoda was a police station area where illicit liquor was rampant. The OIC of the police station was Sub Inspector Yahmapath. He was doing a good job keeping the area under control, particularly that of illicit liquor. There was a petition against him alleging various misdeeds. I had to go into the matter to find some of his subordinates were behind the petition. Although I was of half a mind to help the OIC out of his difficulty as I was convinced of his honesty, I was in a difficult situation myself. Therefore, I had to go to the Superintendent for advice. His advice was typically stereotyped. Before I could complete the investigation, I got transfer orders to the Hatton Police District.
Transfer to Gampaha Division was made at a time when the General Election Campaign was on. Election meetings were being held all over the Gampaha District by the respective political parties. One such meeting was being held by the United National Party (UNP) in Veyangoda town. Veyangoda was a Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP) stronghold and the supporters believed that no one else dare hold any meetings in their territory.
So, when the UNP decided to defy this belief they came in for severe heckling. So much so that it was almost impossible to continue with their meeting. Organizers of the meeting complained to me about their predicament. I decided to have a look and proceeded to the scene. While on the way my constable driver would warn me to let things alone as any interference was wrought with dire consequences. He was giving me friendly advice.
At the scene, I found how unruly the crowds opposed to the meeting were. I tried to persuade the hecklers to leave without results. Since it was bound tc lead to a breach of the peace if the situation was allowed to continue, I summoned a backup party from the Gampaha HQ Station. After a while, a heavy truck with a few men from Gampaha HQ Station appeared on the scene. On seeing the truck, the unruly crowd dispersed and ran helter-skelter. The meeting continued peacefully.
Finally, at the election, the UNP won the Gampha Seat. In the meanwhile, I received transfer orders to proceed to take charge of the Hatton Police District w.e.f. May 1, 1965. On hearing this the newly elected Member of Parliament (MP) of the UNP came over the telephone and spoke to me, and offered to get the transfer canceled in appreciation of my impartial duty performed by me during the election campaign. While thanking him for his sentiments I explained to him politely that the transfer was due to exigencies of services, that I had to make way for a married officer who had school-going children, and that we bachelors are always at the beck and call of the department.
Besides, Hatton Police District was an independent charge with the Superintendent in Kandy. Being still under probation it is a rare opportunity that one gets to go in charge of an independent district. When S.P. Kandy (Ana Seneviratne) agreed to take me under his wing in an independent district, that spoke of the confidence he had placed in me.
Hatton
Hatton Police District came under Kandy Police Division and the Superintendent in charge was Ana Seneviratne. Hatton District had eight police stations spreading from Hatton to Talawakelle bordering Nuwara Eliya on one side, Hatton, Dimbula, Lindula, Norton Bridge, Bogawantalawa, and Maskeliya on the other side, surrounded by tea estates and a rural population. It was entirely a different experience from the previous locations I have had, climate-vice, population-vice, and law enforcement vice.
On reporting at the new district, I found lodgings with two other bachelor public servants – one, a veterinary surgeon, and the other a dental surgeon. Inspector Dharmaratne was the HQI. ASP’s office was staffed by three clerks – the head clerk, and two other clerks. They were like a closely-knit family and very supportive. The inclement cold weather did not deter me from making surprise visits to the far-flung police stations day or night, keeping the district alert. In addition, I would call on the police stations to check whether the scheduled activities like the parade, etc. are being carried out. Night visits were sometimes hindered by the prevailing thick fog. But with the young and experienced police driver attached to me, traveling at night was no problem. He was clever at negotiating even the sharp bends in thick fog.
Prolonged labor strikes in the tea estates were somewhat bothersome problems that we had to face because of the violence that accompanied such labor unrest. In one such instance when I was at my wit’s end not knowing what to do, SP Kandy stepped in and ordered that police be posted temporarily at the estate concerned. That was tantamount to opening a police post at the venue. That was a new approach that I learned from this situation. Otherwise, crime in the district was not a problem. The problem was mostly the illicit sale of liquor and the resulting violence.
In the meanwhile, I got married to my fiance in August 1965 having obtained special permission from the department as any probationer wishing to tie the knot has to do. I found a house on rent and moved in there with my wife leaving my two friends and the boarding. My wife was a graduate teacher attached to a school in Katugastota. On being married 1 had to work out a transfer for her to a school in Hatton. Since then every time I got transferred, I had to arrange a transfer for my wife as well on my own with no assistance forthcoming from the Police Department. So much so, that I finally cultivated a friend in the Education Department in the section dealing with transfers. He was very helpful in working out transfers whenever the need arose.
I was in Hatton only till the end of 1965 when I got caught up on the annual transfer list and was transferred to Ratnapura Police Division on January 1, 1966.
Ratnapura
On transfer, I reported to Superintendent Thalaysingham and took charge of Ratnapura District II. This district too consisted of eight police stations starting from Balangoda, Kahawatte, Embilipitiya, Udawalawe, Rakwana, Pallebedda, Kolnne, and Kuruvita. I had been in the district barely for three months when I was transferred out again to Badulla Police Division on March 15, 1966.
As my usual practice of keeping the district alert, I did a night round to Kolonne Police Station in the early hours of the morning that took those at the police station including the OIC by surprise. After this visit, the word had gone around that I was visiting the police stations at all odd hours. Later on, I came to know that the moment I leave the HQ Station that the police stations in the district were alerted over the phone or the police radio, that I am on my way. So the police stations in the district were kept alert not knowing when and where I would surface.
Kahawatte was a police area where there was an overloading of bus transport. This was an offense coming under the Traffic Ordinance. I came to hear that this was being carried on with the support of SI Traffic of Kahawatte Police Station who was receiving bribes. I had no way of catching him taking bribes. Instead, whenever I visited the area and found overloaded buses, I used to take them to task by offloading the extra passengers. This affected the income of the Traffic SI and the bus owners as well.
One day when I was in the office, the SP called me to his office and confronted me with the MP for Rakwana who was representing the affected bus transport parties. He went on to explain that transport was difficult in the area and that my action was tantamount to harassment of the people. It was then I realized that what I was doing was counterproductive but when the MP learned the reason why I was doing it was to prevent the SI from taking bribes he took no further action.
On my part, I relented considering the difficulties caused due to a dearth of transport facilities in the area. That was a lesson I learned from the MP – to be sensitive to the problems affecting the common man when applying the law strictly by the book.
SP Thalaysingham seems to have taken a liking to me for keeping the district on its toes. One day he sent for me. I had to meet him at the Ratnapura Planters’ Club. While proceeding to the venue I overheard him telling some of his companions about the strict young officer (referring to me) and that he was planning to entrust a disciplinary inquiry against the very same Sl of Kahawatte Police Station to me in the belief that the SI would be properly dealt with. This word must have gotten into the ears of the SI as well.
Not long after I received a message from Police HQ that I should appear before the Inspector-General of Police John Attygalle on the given date. Eventually, I was produced before the Inspector-General by the Deputy Inspector General of Police of the Range AC Dep. I was nonplussed not knowing why I had been called before the Inspector-General. During the interview, the latter appeared to be infuriated for some reason and he turned to me and asked me what I have done to mess up things.
He then appraised me of the complaint against me, that I had been meeting Mrs. Bandaranaike, the Opposition Leader, at the Pathakada Temple along with the chief priest of the temple and plotting against the Dudley Senanayake Government. The complaint had come from Mrs. Sita Molamure Seneviratne, the MP for Balangoda. I was simply flabbergasted by this diabolical lie and I could well imagine who could have made up this concoction.
When I explained to the Inspector—General what I was doing in the district to keep it on its toes he immediately became appreciative of my enthusiastic performance. Before he listened to my story, he was going to transfer me to Batticaloa it seems, but now having listened to me he said he would explain matters to the concerned authorities and not to worry about a transfer. Two weeks after the interview, however, transfer orders came, not to Batticaloa but to Badulla Division with married quarters available.
So I knew that IG was helpless. It had to be done as the orders came from the State Minister — a political decision. But the IG saw to it that the department was fair to me by posting me to a convenient station. The SI had his day but I was richer for the experience.
Badulla
I left Rathnapura Division and reported to the Superintendent of Police Badulla Division in March 1966. Superintendent of Police L.C. Abeysekera (fondly known among his friends as ‘Specy’) was in charge of the Badulla Division.
Badulla Police District extended from Badulla up to Maha Oya on one side, Mahiyangana, and Moneragala on the other. In between were Madulsima, Passara, Lunugala, and Bibile. Mahaoya and Moneragala were elephant-infested areas. The word had been spread that it was dangerous to travel in those parts at night. This kind of story assured that no officer would visit these stations at night. Such scary tales did not deter me from carrying out my duties. Early, middle and late-night visits to these stations were carried out as usual as I did in the other districts.
During these visits, I detected several misdemeanors committed by the staff. Once when I was out on a night round at Badulla I found a constable attached to the Traffic Branch misusing a government motorcycle. He was immediately taken to task. Then in Mahiyangana, a night patrol was found off their patrolling route watching a street drama (Sokari) in the night. When I visited Madulsima police station in the wee hours of the morning, the constable supposed to be on duty at the Charge Room was missing and later found gambling with others in another location. I approached the location on tip-toe with my driver behind me as a witness and caught the entire bunch of constables gambling.
I recorded their statements, signed their pocket notebooks as well as all the Information Books leaving no room for making false entries, made my observations in the Officer’s Visiting Book (OVB), interdicted the lot immediately, and left the station. Similarly, there were other instances too where the constable on duty in the Charge Room was not alert and was found sleeping. In each case, they were appropriately dealt with. Further, when I visit a station at night, I usually check the single men’s barracks too to ensure that all off-duty single men were present and that the roll call had been taken.
Major crimes in the district were few and far between. Once multiple murder was reported in Moneragala. At first, the suspect was unknown. One of the victims of the attack, a young girl who was the only eyewitness would not come out with her story when questioned by the police. The OIC who was investigating was at his wit’s end. When I visited the scene and reviewed the evidence available, I suggested that the girl be confronted by her grandmother. That worked and working on her evidence we were able to unravel the entire story behind the murders and the rape of the victim committed on a sandbank of a stream that led us to the suspect who later confessed to the magistrate. Thus, a C3 case was solved and the accused was brought to book with a little innovative thinking.
At another time a homicide was reported while I was inspecting Mahiyangana Police Station. A man clad in full white came to the police station with the murder weapon and surrendered saying that he killed his wife who was caught with her paramour. I visited the scene immediately with the OIC and a few others at the station and found the victim in a seated posture with the severed head as if she was worshipping her murderer. I left the scene with instructions to carry on with the investigation. The suspect was later produced before the Magistrate where he confessed to the Magistrate. At the end of the prosecution, the accused was found guilty of murder on grave and sudden sudden provocation and was given a life sentence.
The SP was a keen sportsman. He did many things to promote sports in the division. He organized a sports meet at one time, on a grand scale. Much effort had to be put into this project. It was meticulously planned by him and carried out with the support of the OICs of Police Stations and well-wishers. IG John Attygalle was the chief guest at the sports meet ending up with a gala ballroom dance in the night.
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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