- Criticises former Minister’s political interference
The Ceylon Electricity Board Engineers’ Union (CEBEU) yesterday (5) defended the appointment of Eng. K.G.R.F. Comester as the new General Manager of the Ceylon Electricity Board (CEB), emphasising that the process adhered to the CEB Act No.17 of 1969.
According to the union, the act requires that “a competent and experienced person” be appointed to the post, with approval from the minister. Eng. Comester assumed duties on Tuesday (1).
Responding to statements made by the former Power and Energy Minister, the CEBEU stressed that the requisite competence and experience for the role of general manager were specific to the electricity sector, particularly in areas such as generation, transmission, and distribution.
The union argued that an outsider would lack the necessary knowledge of CEB operations, making it difficult to effectively lead the country’s largest utility provider.
The CEBEU also highlighted that, until recently, the general manager position had never been a political appointment.
The union criticised the former Minister for politicising the role, recalling his public statement that he could appoint anyone to the position, even his driver, under the act. The union expressed disappointment at the Minister’s “lack of knowledge” and “poor attitude” towards such a critical position.
For over six decades, the CEB has maintained a tradition of promoting the most senior engineer within its ranks to the general manager position, ensuring that the individual has the highest level of experience in managing CEB operations. The union confirmed that Eng. Comester’s appointment followed this long-standing procedure.
However, the CEBEU revealed that the previous General Manager, a senior engineer, had been denied the opportunity to serve his full tenure of one-and-a-half years due to the former Minister’s decision to appoint an external candidate.
The union claimed that this move had been politically motivated, aimed at advancing business interests, including promoting unsolicited proposals for energy projects such as Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) procurement and renewable energy initiatives like those involving Adani, Poonakary, and Oddamavadi.
The Engineers’ Union further criticised the former General Manager’s appointment, noting that he had served only in an acting capacity while holding a full-time position elsewhere, limiting his ability to dedicate time to the CEB.
It emphasised the need for a full-time, permanent general manager to effectively lead the country’s largest utility.
The CEBEU also accused the former Minister and his associates of launching a smear campaign against the newly-appointed Chairman and other officials under the new Government. According to the union, the former Minister is “waiting to see any failure” of the new leadership for his own political gain.
The union defended the new Chairman, Dr. Tilak Siyambalapitiya, describing him as a world-renowned power sector expert who had consistently advocated for transparent, competitive procurement processes and fought against the promotion of expensive, unsolicited proposals.
The Chairman had also publicly criticised the former Government’s failure to implement the country’s Long-Term Generation Expansion Plan and worked to reduce electricity prices for consumers affected by poor policy decisions.