Shipmanagement: How I Work

projects that did not improve the SLPA’s Dammika Ranatunga prospects or finances. Dammika was Chairman of Sri Lanka Ports Authority brought in to cleanse the Augean stables. Although Ranatunga steers clear of mentioning his predecessor by name, or By Shirish Nadkarni “I have to wear that belt whenever directly denigrating the projects with which I walk. In fact, I will have to shortly the former Chairman was associated, it hen Dammika Ranatunga undergo surgery for a slipped disc in the is a matter of public record that Priyath stands up slowly and sacro-lumbar region,” says the 53-year-old Bandu Wickrema, who was Rajapaksa’s awkwardly from behind Dammika, who is also an international nominee to what is essentially a political hisW massive desk at the Sri Lanka Ports cricketer, having represented Sri Lanka appointment, left the SLPA in disgrace. Authority (SLPA) headquarters to greet in two Tests in 1989 and four one-day What’s more, an investigation was you, you cannot escape the feeling that internationals in 1990, as a right-hand carried out into Wickrema’s personal you are in the presence of Sri Lanka’s middle-order batsman and occasional finances for allegedly having amassed most successful cricket captain, who offbreak bowler. wealth disproportionate to his known delivered the 1996 World Cup to his sources of income. He and his wife were delirious countrymen. questioned in mid-March last year by Indeed, the resemblance between the Central Intelligence Department Arjuna Ranatunga and his equally stocky, over alleged money laundering in deals portly elder brother Dammika is startling, When I took over as done by Wickrema with, among others, and seems to have got accentuated with Chairman, it took me China Communications Construction every passing year. Even the unruly grey- a couple of weeks Company, which has been building the white mop that sits atop Dammika’s head Colombo Port City on reclaimed land. is a mirror-image of Arjuna’s trademark “to analyse what was “When I took over as Chairman, it hairstyle. right and what was took me a couple of weeks to analyse what It came as something of a shock to was right and what was wrong with the the Sri Lankan people when Arjuna wrong with the SLPA, SLPA, and what the future held for us,” says – who was appointed Ports, Shipping and what the future Ranatunga. “Our own container facility at and Aviation Minister by Maithripala held for us Colombo, Jaya Container Terminal (JCT), Sirisena, who won the Presidential was losing shipping lines, mainly due to a election in January 2015 – handpicked steep drop in our productivity. his older sibling to head the SLPA, one “The injury is a relic of my cricket- “We took corrective measures; and of the cornerstones of the island nation’s playing days, and, in fact, I had to” give up now, we are almost on par with the two economy. After all, the former Sri Lanka playing the game because of a chronically private sector terminals – South Asia cricket skipper had been among the most weak back. The slipped disc has troubled Gateway Terminals (SAGT), a former vociferous critics of the blatant nepotism me off and on for several years, even DP World property, and Colombo that existed in the earlier regime of when I was pursuing a career in the US. International Container Terminal Mahinda Rajapaksa. I returned to Sri Lanka to set up water (CICT), owned by China Merchant “Yes, the Minister had to face that desalination plants, but got roped into Holdings – on the productivity score. If uncomfortable issue, but for him, it was this SLPA job. My back problem has you find that you can get something like a question of finding the right man to unfortunately got exacerbated of late, that done in a month’s time, it must be head the SLPA, and he probably felt that due to my spending 12 to 14 hours a day, considered a good achievement; don’t his brother was one of the few people seven days a week, in this chair. ” you agree?” he could trust to occupy this hot seat,” The punishing work schedule that No doubt the SLPA would have been smiles Dammika, as he gingerly lowers the SLPA head honcho has forced able to attract more traffic to the container himself into his chair, and squirms himself to follow, since he took charge in facilities owned and operated by it, had around until he finds a comfortable mid-October 2015, was brought upon the East Terminal at the deepwater South sitting position. One observes a lumbar him thanks to the profligacy of an earlier Harbour been functional by end-2015, as belt on the sideboard, and the SLPA incumbent who headed the organisation originally planned. East Terminal could chief nods in acknowledgment of the for a little over four years, and made then have competed directly with the raised eyebrow. a huge dent in its coffers by pursuing Chinese-run CICT, since both would

Issue 60 March/April 2016 Ship Management International 19