Opinion

Politics at play in power sector

Published

4 years ago

2022/03/5

There appears to be a difference in assessing the power supply between the actual supplier of electricity, CEB, PUCSL the moderator and the Ministry of Power, and we the consumers in all sectors, domestic, business and industrial, are confused as to whom we should rely on to adjust our day-to-day operations.

In a news item, Gamini Lokuge, then Minister of Power, has said, “We have a sufficient number of thermal power plants but we have a question of getting sufficient fuel stocks for the operation of all power plants.” This statement coming from a government minister should be accepted unless it is his own ill-conceived or unqualified utterance. While this is the assurance given by Minister Lokuge, the Chairman of PUCSL, Janaka Ratnayaka says, “PUCSL has given approval to impose a seven and a half hour power cut between 8.30 am and 6 pm in the morning and two and a half hour power cut from 6.00 pm to 11.00 pm in the evening.” The reason he gives is due to not having enough fuel, and there is a 700 Mw shortage. This approval for shedding power has been at the request of the CEB, the supplier, who knows its capabilities and availability of resources to supply electricity. This begs the question as to whom the CEB is responsible or answerable, the Ministry of Power or PUCSL.

As the statement of Minister Lokuge is not what the CEB had fed the PUCSL with, it would appear that the statement of Minister Lokuge is personal and should not be taken seriously, aside from the fact that he is not qualified to make such a statement. What action does the Ministry of Power contemplate against the CEB for by-passing the Ministry?

The worst confusion is that both Minister Lokuge, his Ministry of Power and the PUCSL have pointed out that the power shedding is due to lack of fuel to operate thermal generators and not the inadequacy of thermal power stations. In this regard, an expert on energy management, Dr. Tilak Siyambalapitiya, has in his analytic statement pointed out the inadequacy of thermal power generating plants. “Anyone can check how much of electricity production capacity Sri Lanka has by studying authentic information on the web. Sri Lanka’s electricity generating capacity and customer demand, to the closest 100 megawatt is as follows…The peak demand this year is forecast to reach 2900 megawatt. In the year 2020, the peak demand reported was 2717 megawatt. It happens in the night, around 7pm. On Monday 31 January 2022, Sri Lanka reported a peak demand of 2710 megawatt at 7pm, without load shedding. So, we are inching toward the 2900 MW peak, as temperatures rise toward 34 C (presently 32 C), and industries and hotels ramp up with more orders and guests, respectively, as we approach April.” The most damning statement he makes is, “Thus, even if all the money in the world is available to buy fuel, with no outages of any power plant, the capacity on the grid is simply not adequate to meet the customer demand. The 200-megawatt minimum shortage and the absence of 800-megawatt of new power plant can be hidden by ‘ministerial order’ or ‘regulatory commission order’, but not for long. The end is very near.”

In simple language any layman can understand, the CEB has no thermal power plant or any other to meet the ever-increasing demand and the problem will aggravate unless immediate action is taken to strengthen power generation by adding power plants. Had the then Minister of Power and Energy, under the Yahapalana government of Maithripala Sirisena, not interfered with the award of the tender for the 300 MW LNG plant at Kerawalapitiya, causing a delay of nearly four years, the position today may have been different.

If the assessment above is to become a reality, the action taken by the Ministry, the PUCSL and the CEB amounts to the Sinhala saying ‘Atheesareta Ambude Gahanawa’, wearing a diaper to stop diarrhoea.

Energy, electricity, is a vital utility for any country’s socio-economic development and should be handled with expert care, without playing POLITICAL PANDU.

G.A.D. SIRIMAL

Boralesgamuwa

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Opinion

Those who play at bowls must look out for rubbers

Published

41 mins ago

2026/01/27

Sahan Weerasooriya

President Anura Kumara Dissanayake should listen at least to the views of the Mothers’ Front on proposed educational reforms.

I was listening to the apolitical views expressed by the mothers’ front criticising the proposed educational reforms of the government and I found that their views were addressing some of the core questionable issues relevant to the schoolchildren, and their parents, too.

They were critical of the way the educational reforms were formulated. The absence of any consultation with the stakeholders or any accredited professional organisation about the terms and the scope of education was one of the key criticisms of the Mothers’ Front and it is critically important to comprehend the validity of their opposition to the proposed reforms. Further, the proposals do include ideas and designs borrowed from some of the foreign countries which they are now re-evaluating in view of the various shortcomings which they themselves have encountered. On the subject, History, it is indeed unfortunate that it has been included as an optional, whereas in many developed countries it is a compulsory subject; further, in the module the subject is practically limited to pre-historic periods whereas Sri Lanka can proudly claim a longer recorded history which is important to be studied for the students to understand what happened in the past and comprehend the present.

Another important criticism of the Mothers’ Front was the attempted promotion of sexuality in place of sex education. Further there is a visible effort to promote trans-gender concepts as an example when considering the module on family unit which is drawn with two males and a child and two females and a child which are nor representative of Sri Lankan family unit.

Ranjith Soysa

Opinion

Seeds of discord

Published

43 mins ago

2026/01/27

Sahan Weerasooriya

When the LTTE massacred people, mostly Sinhalese Buddhists, government leaders never claimed that the Tamil community, which the LTTE claimed to represent, was driven by hatred. That restraint mattered. That is why it was outrageous to hear President Anura Kumara Dissanayake tell Tamils that Buddhists visiting the North to worship were doing so out of spite. If reports are accurate, the President also declared that we needed a prosperous nation free of racism and united in spirit. Yet, in the same breath he sowed seeds of division recklessly.

Had he spoken in Tamil or English, some might have dismissed it as a slip of the tongue. But in Sinhala, the words carried unmistakable intent. Who could have expected such divisive rhetoric to come from the head of a nation now enjoying fragile coexistence, after enduring a 30‑year war and two insurrections that devastated the economy?

A Ratnayake

Opinion

Where are we heading?

Published

43 mins ago

2026/01/27

Sahan Weerasooriya

The Island editorial, dated 22 January, 2026, under the title ‘Conspiracy to subvert constitutional order,’ is an eye-opener to those who supported the so-called Äragalaya in July 2022 and those who voted to bring the current regime into power with various positive expectations, including ‘ a system change’. ( https://island.lk/conspiracy-to-subvert-constitutional-order/ )

The editorial highlighted, with irrefutable evidence, how a foreign diplomat and a group of Sri Lankans, consisting of some religious leaders (a Buddhist monk, some Catholic priests) and a trade unionist, made a blatantly illegal bid to pressure the then Speaker Mahinda Yapa Abeywardena to take over the executive presidency in violation of the Constitution. The intention of the intimidator tactics was said to be to create in Sri Lanka a situation similar to that in Libya.

The editorial also mentioned how Minister K.D. Lal Kantha and his JVP attempted to lead the Aragalaya protestors to capture Parliament, but without success. Addressing a public rally, under the title ‘Let’s read Lenin’, a few days ago, Minister Lal Kantha has revealed that their planning was to follow what Lenin had said and done during the Russian revolution. Minister Lal Kantha said: “We do not have the power of the State although we managed to obtain the power of the Government. Hence, we are now engaged in the struggle to win the power of the State’’.

In a democratic society, there is a need to ensure maintaining Law and Order without any state interference. It looks like the intention of the Minister is to bring the Police, Armed Forces and the Judiciary, including all the State Services, under direct control of the ruling party, by filling those positions with JVP loyalists to suppress the opponents of the government.

There is also an attempt by the JVP-led forces to remove the Attorney General by making unsubstantiated allegations against him. As per a latest news item in The Island, under the title “Opposition slams sitting HC judge’s appointment as Justice Ministry additional Secretary”, is alleging President Anura Kumara Dissanayake of trying to control the judiciary by appointing a sitting High Court judge as Additional Secretary to the Justice and National Integration Ministry. (https://island.lk/opposition-slams-sitting-hc-judges-appointment-as-justice-ministry-additional-secretary/)

On the other hand, the ruling party is trying to appoint one of their cronies as Auditor General, possibly, to cover up a number of questionable deals made during the year they ruled and to ensure achieving the so-called power of the State.

Unless the people, especially those who naively dreamt of ‘a system change’, have a clear understanding of the ultimate goal and motives of the ongoing changes and take appropriate actions to protect their own democratic rights, they will be left with no other alternative but to live under a repressive government.

Sangadasa Akurugoda