Provincial Unions oppose appointment of Sinhawansa as Executive Director

By Allaam Ousman

The newly constituted Working Task Force (WTF) appointed to manage the affairs of Sri Lanka Rugby (SLR) has run into early turbulence, with the provincial rugby unions lodging a formal objection to the appointment of Hassan Sinhawansa as Executive Director of the committee.

The objection, spearheaded by Kavinda Jayasena, President of the Central Province Rugby Football Union (CPRFU), was addressed to the Chairman of the Working Task Force, M. R. Latiff, retired Senior Deputy Inspector General of Police. Jayasena’s letter reportedly reflects the unified sentiment of all provincial unions, according to well-placed sources.

The controversy emerged following a communication sent by Shamrath Fernando, Co-ordinator to the Chairman of the Tournament Committee, to all rugby stakeholders on May 29, which listed the officially appointed members of the Working Task Force under Gazette Notification No. 2437/32, published on May 22, 2025.

Members of the Working Task Force comprise M.R. Latiff – Chairman (Retired Senior DIG of Police), Suresh Subramaniam – Chairman, National Olympic Committee, Dinal Phillips – President’s Counsel, M.H. Marso – Retired DIG of Police and Ravindranath Wijenathan.

According to the letter, the committee had appointed Hassan Sinhawansa as the Executive Director of SLR with immediate effect.

In his strongly worded letter, Jayasena acknowledged that the provincial unions had once endorsed Sinhawansa’s appointment as Executive Director during his previous tenure. However, he stressed that the Ministry of Sports had later removed him in 2024, citing growing dissatisfaction among stakeholders.

“During his tenure at SLR, we observed significant concerns regarding his professional conduct and work ethics,” Jayasena wrote. “As a result, his duties were not carried out with the respect and trust expected from someone in such a role.”

The letter further emphasised that appointing a previously dismissed official to such a sensitive role during a period of transition could compromise credibility and derail reform efforts intended to restore public and stakeholder confidence in Sri Lanka Rugby.

The Provincial Unions have urged the Chairman of the Working Task Force to reconsider Sinhawansa’s appointment and to select a more suitable candidate who carries no past administrative baggage or disciplinary record.

“We respectfully request that he be removed from the Task Force and replaced with a more suitable candidate — preferably someone who has not been previously suspended or dismissed from service,” the letter concluded.

At the time of writing, official sources neither confirmed nor denied the formal appointment of Sinhawansa or whether any internal review of the objection is currently underway. 

The formation of the Working Task Force comes after the Sports Minister moved decisively to resolve the long-running SLR governance impasse, opting to steer away from the appointment of an Interim Committee and instead forming a five-member panel to oversee the drafting of a new constitution and conduct long-overdue elections.

The move has been widely welcomed, though stakeholders remain cautious about ensuring transparency, fair representation, and professionalism in the transitional phase.

This latest objection from the Provincial Unions signals growing scrutiny of appointments and governance structures, as the rugby community awaits a new chapter in Sri Lanka’s rugby administration.