New Chairman assures action
The new board of directors of the national carrier is currently studying the Weliamuna Report which late last week leveled allegations against the previous board for gross mismanagement, and recommended that criminal charges be brought up against the then Chairman and CEO.
“The procedure is that the report will be tabled in Parliament by the Minister (Arjuna Ranatunga) this week, and then we will be guided by the Minister. At the moment, the board is studying it,” SriLankan Airlines Chairman Ajith Dias said.
The report showed the findings of a Board of Inquiry panel led by anti-corruption lawyer J. C. Weliamuna.
It indicated anomalies in the US$2.3 billion procurement of new aircraft, high indulgence of the top management, and appointing unqualified members to top positions.
The report also revealed SriLankan Airlines Past Chairman Nishantha Wickramasinghe’s (brother-in-law of former President Mahinda Rajapaksa) unusual interest towards some cabin crew members. “The report indicates there are things, huge problems. And I think it answers most questions,” Dias said.
Mirror Business inquired whether action will be taken against employees of the lower echelon, such as cabin crew for their misconduct.
In addition to fraternizing with top management and government officials, which brought them unwarranted power, some cabin crew members had allegedly engaged in the trafficking of duty-free goods.
“We have not made a decision yet. We are not going to do or say anything until all the facts are known. But don’t get me wrong, we do have plans. And we’ll take the Minister’s suggestions,” Dias said.
In reply to when SriLankan would start making profits again, he said that it was too early to tell.
“You can be assured, we are working towards it. But there are too many problems. There was a US$850 million loss in the past 4 years alone. You have to understand, we only took over on 12th of February. It’s not easy for us to turn it around in a year,” Dias stressed.
He said that a budget would be prepared within the next 2 weeks to give a projection, and a statement would be made by the top management by the 20th of April to address all issues. “It’s my money, your money, the taxpayer’s money. So we have to come to some decision,” he said.