Archives

by Pravin Mendis

Industry and business leaders from the banking, shipping and hotel trades yesterday called upon the new Government that will informed on the basis of election results to create to a stable and peaceful atmosphere with a new team of ministers who are capable of re-establishing confidence in the set-up.

Chairman and Managing Director of Hatton National Bank, Rienzie T. Wijetilleke said it was clear that the ruling party had been rejected by the majority of people in the country. He said the immediate task for a new Govt. under Mr. Ranil Wickremesinghe will be to see the creation of a new environment to a stable and peaceful atmosphere by re-establishing confidence in the set up. Mr. Wijetilleke said the new Prime Minister needs to appoint a team of Ministers who can go through a quick and efficient process of learning.

The new Prime Minister needs to make those under him accountable and work for results within certain time frames to revive the country back on the right path, Mr. Wijetilleke told the Daily News.

Mr. Ratna Sivaratnam, Chairman of the Aitken Spence Group and Chairman of the Employer's Federation said the change in government augurs well for the private sector in general and the Aitken Spence Group which is exposed to tourism.

The tourism industry will bounce back to the numbers that the industry envisaged to reach in year 2000 of a million tourists very rapidly under the new administration if the ethnic problem is solved as Mr. Ranil Wickremesinghe has said very clearly that he is committed to solve it," Mr. Sivaratnam said.

'If peace dawns the target of a million tourists will become a reality', Sivaratnam said.

As a private sector conglomerate the Aitken Spence Group is ready to take on the challenges that lie before us to drive the country's economy very intensively to reach figures of 8-9% per cent of the GDP year on year. Figures of 3-4% will then be history.

Another factor which needs the immediate attention of the newly formed Government will be swiftly put in to place the labour reforms that the Employer's Federation together with the Commissioner of Labour and the Trade Unions have agreed upon, Sivaratnam said.

Speaking as the chairman of the Employers' Federation Mr. Sivaratnam said a tripartite agreement on labour reforms need immediate implementation without the Government elect dragging its feet for a long time.

Mr. Parakrama Dissanayake, Vice Chairman of the Ceylon Association of Shipping Agents said he hoped the new government will instill a different management culture within the shipping and ports industry.

The new government needs to seek the advise of professionals in the industry in implementing various objectives. The new government needs to place the right people in the correct place with a view to make things happen, he said, indicating that the state would otherwise sink into a state of hibernation.

The Port of Hambantota should be demand driven and not supply driven. A feasibility study needs to be done on the viability of its necessity. The Colombo Port should be developed to sustain the current level of operations with a competent management team who should be selected, Dissanayake said.

News | Business | Features | Editorial | Security
Politics | World | Letters | Sports | Obituaries |

Produced by Lake House
Copyright 2001 The Associated Newspapers of Ceylon Ltd.
Comments and suggestions to :Web Manager