News
Union blames loss-making state ventures on governments using them as job banks
By Shiran Ranasinghe
Successive governments had used state owned enterprises as job banks for henchmen and the same politicians are now complaining that those venture were making losses, head of the National Employees Union of the Petroleum Corporation, Ananda Palitha, said yesterday.Palitha said that the government was trying to sell the Ceylon Electricity Board (CEB), and the Ceylon Petroleum Corporation (CPC), stating that they were making huge losses.
“The same people who overstaffed these institutions and bankrupted them are now claiming they are making losses. They can still be turned around if proper action is taken.”
Trade unions will launch a strike if the government tried to sell the Ports Authority, Sri Lanka Telecom, Ceylon Electricity Board (CEB), Ceylon Petroleum Corporation (CPC) and other strategic assets on the pretext of restructuring, Palitha warned.
Palitha said that the unions had commenced discussions on a strike. “The government is trying to convince people that the CEB and the CPC are making losses because of their workers’ salaries, and overtime payments. The government will then sell these organisations to foreign companies cheaply”, he said.
Palitha said that if the salaries, and the overtime payments, are the reason for high fuel prices, then Lanka IOC should be able to sell their fuel at a lower rate.
“Prime Ministers SWRD and Sirimavo Bandaranaike took over many strategic assets that were under the control of foreign companies. The current leaders are selling these assets, back to foreigners”, he said.
Palitha said that Gotabaya Rajapaksa had made colossal economic blunders that made it impossible for the CPC to import fuel.
“The same people shut the Sapugaskanda Oil Refinery. Now they are trying to blame the workers for this disaster,” he said.
Palitha added that the government was also trying to sell profit-making state assets such as the SriLankan Catering and also Ground Handling. “Minister Nimal Siripala has said that both make profits and the government will use the proceeds from the sales to pay off SriLankan loans. “They must try to find a buyer for the loss-making airline. Who took away the airline from Emirates?” he asked.
The National Building Research Organisation (NBRO) has issued landslide early warnings to Kandy, Kegalle and Nuwara Eliya Districts.
Accordingly level I landslide early warnings have been issued to the Divisional Secretaries Divisions of Pasbage Korale in the Kandy District, Yatiyanthota and Deraniyagala in the Kegalle District and Ambagamuwa in the Nuwara Eliya District.
President Ranil Wickremesinghe convened a discussion at the Presidential Secretariat on Thursday afternoon (08) to address the Action Plan for Reconciliation and instructed the relevant departments to expedite the drafting of legislation necessary for the plan’s implementation.
The progress of initiatives within five key areas -legislation, institutional activities, land issues, prisoner release, and power decentralization, was also reviewed.
The discussion encompassed several important topics including the implementation of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC), the establishment of a National Land Council and the formulation of a National Land Policy.
Additionally, the President emphasized the need for enhanced operations of the Office of Missing Persons (OMP), including digitization efforts and the issuance of Certificates of Absence for individuals who had previously disappeared without trace.
In an effort to accelerate trade facilitation commitments and bolster the business landscape in Sri Lanka, a high-level review of the National Trade Facilitation Committee (NTFC) was conducted at the Presidential Secretariat on Wednesday (7).
The review focused on assessing the progress of trade facilitation commitments and scrutinizing the performance of the NTFC Secretariat. The private sector also voiced their views on expediting actions to ensure the completion of measures ahead of the projected timeline of 2025-2030.
In order to streamline compliance and optimize performance, several directives were issued during the meeting. Firstly, it was decided to establish the NTFC Secretariat under the supervision of the Ministry of Finance. Secondly, immediate measures to be taken to address the staffing requirements of the Secretariat and lastly, the budget allocated for the NTFC Secretariat in 2023, currently under the Department of Customs, was to be transferred to the Ministry of Finance to prioritize pending actions such as the development of the NTFC website and progress reporting system.
During the meeting, deliberations took place concerning the proposed National Single Window, a system aimed at simplifying and expediting trade processes. The participants agreed to expedite the submission of the proposal in a sequential manner to ensure its swift implementation.
Landslide Early Warnings issued to Kandy, Kegalle and Nuwara Eliya Districts
Expedite Action Plan for Reconciliation – President
National Trade Facilitation Committee Secretariat to be established
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