Proposed plans to restructure Lanka Sathosa led to mounting speculation last week that privatization is on the cards, but the state-owned organization’s Chairman Kiran Atapattu ruled out any such move with a firm assurance that the giant commodity trading institution will continue to remain under government control.
"There will be no privatization and that’s final", says Atapattu.
Restructuring doesn’t mean handing over the institution to the private sector, he clarified. "The whole idea behind the move is to streamline Lanka Sathosa and make it more profitable in the long-term".
Accumulated debts running into Rs. 13 billion over the years has impacted negatively on day-to-day operations, but the issue is being sorted out with the government agreeing to pump in Rs. 7.5 billion to offset a part of the liability, trade officials said.
The institution is saddled with a staggering Rs. 10 billion in loans to two banks and another Rs. 3 billion in outstanding payments to suppliers from the time of the previous regime, they said.
It was in this backdrop that Industry and Commerce Minister, Rishad Bathiudeen opened the flank for speculation on possible privatization after he referred to enlisting the Colombo branch of the global consultancy firm KPMG to shoulder the restructuring process.
The Lanka Sathosa Chairman faced a volley of questions from print and electronic media outlets and the critical query posed was – ‘Does restructuring mean the organization will be privatized?’
The authoritative response was that there is absolutely no such move. Privatization is completely out of the picture and Lanka Sathosa will continue a key government venture which helps in a big way to stabilize prices in the marketplace.
There is a dearth of certain consumer commodities now because suppliers are not replenishing stocks until outstanding payments are settled, the officials said.
"We are now awaiting Treasury funding to clear it up", Atapattu assured. "We will stand by the 3,500 employees and ensure that their jobs remain secure".
"By offering the most competitive prices on essential consumer commodities in the market, we intervene to balance right pricing across the board", he noted.
