SLT CEO quits amidst trade union pressure
In the wake of trade union‘s allegations of corruption and mismanagement, Sri Lanka Telecom (SLT) Group CEO Dileepa Wijesundera tendered his resignation on Wednesday stating that he will be retiring from the post in March next year, official sources said.
He had not reported for work during the past couple of week citing ill health, SLT officials revealed. When contacted by the Business Times, Mr. Wijesundera confirmed the move but also noted that he was going on retirement.
A heated argument on the present loss making status of the SLT with the Chairman P. G. Kumarasinghe recently prompted Mr. Wijesundera to hand over his resignation, a SLT trade union leader said.
Mr. Wijesundera said he was not in a position to accept outdated business management practices being followed by the chairman and the board of directors.
Replying to trade union allegations, the outgoing CEO said that although the SLT has made an annual net profit, it has recorded a loss after tax and therefore the company was not in a position to pay annual bonus to employees.
He pointed out that the SLT has made massive investments in telecom up grading projects including Long Term Evolution (LTE) network project in 2014 and 2016 without phasing out those projects.
This has resulted in a massive Rs.11 billion depreciation loss for the company and it was unbearable, he said adding that he had suggested a modern restructuring programme to regain the momentum of the company but unfortunately that didn’t materialise.
Heavy investments in the past have led to financial instability of the institution and unproductive operations; he said adding that the present restructuring process in the administrative structure was aimed at improving the productivity of the staff.