Cabinet committee to monitor fuel purchases

The purchase of oil in future will be only permitted after a newly appointed cabinet subcommittee scrutinizes and approves the purchase, a reliable government source said yesterday.

He said a number of top level management changes were expected at CEYPETCO including that of Chairman Harry Jayawardene.

The source said a former public servant S. Amarasekara who served as a highways ministry secretary and a former secretary to the prime minister was likely to replace Mr. Jayawardene.

Petroleum Minister Susil Premajayantha said following the controversial import and distribution of a stock of contaminated petrol, a five-member cabinet sub-committee headed by former Petroleum Minister A. H. M. Fowzie and including Ministers Premjayantha, Patali Champika Ranawaka, John Seneviratne and Dilan Perera will now go into all aspects of oil purchases.

“The import and distribution of adulterated petrol that left some 2,000 vehicles damaged would not have happened if a more effective and transparent system was in place,” the minister said.

He said the committee had instructed the CEYPETCO Stock Review Committee to refer all purchase orders in advance so as to give enough time to scrutinize, approve, order and deliver it.

The minister said CEYPETCO was run without a CEO, CFO or a financial controller and this had led to various shortcomings at the top and added that the top management level vacancies would be filled soon.
              
A three-member committee appointed by the minister had found that the recommended procedure and guidelines had not been followed in importing the low quality fuel.

The committee has recommended that compensation be paid to the motorists who have been affected and that the loss incurred by CEYPETCO be charged to the errant company which exported the contaminated stock of petrol.

It also recommended that any losses which could not be recovered from the company be collected from CEYPETCO officials found responsible.

The minister said the Public Services Commission had been directed to take appropriate action against the officials had involved in the scam.

Meanwhile the payment of compensation to affected motorists will be done within the next two weeks based on a ceiling of Rs.50,000 each. (Sandun A. Jayasekera)