Udaya Gammanpila: Latest News

COLOMBO (News 1st); Former Minister Udaya Gammanpila is preparing to move the 22nd Amendment to the Constitution that will prevent foreign nationals from seizing power in Sri Lankan politics.Speaking to reporters in Colombo on Tuesday (29), Gammanpila dismissed claims that his group is attempting to secure the votes lost by the Rajapaksas, and use them for Namal Rajapaksa’s election campaign for the future.“Unfortunately for Namal, with the end of this government, the political journey of the Rajapaksas will come to an end,” said Gammanpila adding it would also end the eight-decade-long nepotism that plagued Sri Lankan politics.“We have no intention of re-electing a Rajapaksa, because no matter which one of them comes to power, it is Basil Rajapaksa who will govern the country,” he said.Udaya Gammanpila said that a measure to address this issue, the 22nd Amendment to the Constitution will be moved in April 2022 in Parliament that will NOT allow any dual citizen to take office in Sri Lanka.Former Minister & Leader of the Pivithuru Hela Urumaya Udaya Gammanpila on Tuesday (29) revealed a process within the constitution that would allow to dissolve parliament and call for elections.He said a new leader will emerge to take this cause forward.

COLOMBO (News 1st); Sri Lanka’s Former Energy Minister Udaya Gammanpila has called on the government to slash the taxes imposed on fuel and provide relief to the People.He told reporters on Monday (14) that the reason for the recent fuel price hike in Sri Lanka was not prompted by the rise in global oil prices.Gammanpila said that mismanagement of Sri Lanka’s reserves, as well as the forced controls on the rupee, was instrumental in causing the present crisis, including a fuel price hike.He further slammed the General Secretary of the Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna, MP Sagara Kariyawasam for calling for his resignation when prices were increased earlier, but is mum when fuel prices were increased in a record hike.“During my tenure as the Energy Minister, I increased the prices of diesel by Rs. 7 as per the recommendations of the Prime Minister and President.

COLOMBO (News 1st); When a Sri Lankan Minister who is a US citizen, negotiates with the United States on behalf of Sri Lanka, it goes beyond reasonable doubt that he will stand for the United States than Sri Lanka, as his property and family are in America, and he can easily return back without consequences after his tenure ends, says former Minister Udaya Gammanpila.Participating in the News 1st ’10 questions’ program, the former Minister alleged that although he did not protest against the 20th amendment when it was introduced, he stated that he fought for the East Terminal of the Colombo Port not to be handed over to foreign investors in the Cabinet.He said that the solutions presented by him to address the crises in Sri Lanka were disregarded as well.He further alleged that Finance Minister Basil Rajapaksa, who he dubbed as ‘The Ugly American’ was behind the New Fortress LNG deal, as well as the investments behind the East Container Terminal.The former Minister also said that the Finance Minister wants to take the country to a point where the economy is collapsed, food shortage is imminent alonfg wiith medicine and fuel.He warned that due to these actions at a certain point national assets must be sold to the United States to feed Sri Lankans.Watch the Full Program Here ;

COLOMBO (News 1st); Former Ministers Wimal Weerawansa and Udaya Gammanpila have been given backbencher seats at the Parliament. Accordingly, Jathika Nidahas Peramuna leader Wimal Weerawansa has secured seat 73 and Pivithuru Hela Urumaya leader Udaya Gammanpila has secured seat 78 at the Parliament, the Serjeant-at-Arms Narendra Fernando stated. The Serjeant-at-Arms also stated that S.B.

COLOMBO (News 1st); Former Sri Lankan Minister Udaya Gammanpila on Friday (3) announced that the battle to free Sri Lanka from the US has begun.Speaking to reporters for the first time since he was stripped of his ministerial position by the President on Thursday (3), Gammanpila said that the country is moving towards an abyss as the economy is managed by a person who has no understanding of economics.Udaya Gammanpila and Wimal Weerwansa were removed from their ministerial portfolios with effect from Thursday (3) evening, said the President’s Media Division.Gammanpila said calls were made to solve the crisis from within and outside of the cabinet of ministers, however, as those calls fell on deaf ears, the launch of a resolution ‘Taking The Nation On The Correct Path’ to solve the economic crisis suffered by Sri Lanka, was implemented.He said rather the looking at this resolution as a solution to the crisis, the administration decided to move out both him and Wimal Weerawansa.Gammanpila said while in government there were restrictions when it came to criticizing the government, however, today he has the freedom to reveal those who are responsible for the destruction caused to the economy.He also went on to note that ‘The Ugly American’, 1958 political novel by Eugene Burdick and William Lederer that depicts the failures of the U.S.

COLOMBO (News 1st); Sri Lanka’s Energy Minister Udaya Gammanpila has revealed that the government will be issuing a gazette on Wednesday (2) night suspending 600 non-essential imports.He said Sri Lanka is facing an issue in identifying its priorities, noting that if foreign reserves are limited, they need to be allocated for medicines, fuel, and raw materials for industries, respectively.Speaking at an event in Kotte, the Minister said Sri Lanka is currently experiencing the consequences of not discouraging imports, after allowing to import whatever was not essential.He said the Treasury Secretary was preparing to issue a gazette that would stop 600 non-essential imports to the country.“It’s too late. But we can be happy about that decision,” said Gammanpila.

COLOMBO (News 1st); Sri Lanka’s Energy Minister Udaya Gammanpila told Parliament on Wednesday (23) that importing fuel has become a challenge.“Over 50% of our export revenue is used to purchase fuel for the country,” he said, adding that at the Emergency Cabinet Meeting on Tuesday (22) the Treasury Secretary instructed the Bank of Ceylon to release funds for a tanker with Diesel.He admitted there is a shortage of Diesel in the country as the CPC restricted its Diesel supplies to the filling stations over the past 5 days, due to the payment issue for the tanker with Diesel at the Colombo Port.“Since December 20th, the global crude oil prices have increased by 38%. However, Sri Lanka did not increase prices.

COLOMBO (News 1st); Sri Lanka’s Energy Minister Udaya Gammanpila on Friday (18) announced that a request was made to the Finance Ministry to remove all taxes imposed on fuel or to increase the fuel process.The Minister was speaking to reporters in Colombo while highlighting the losses incurred by the Ceylon Petroleum Corporation.

COLOMBO (News 1st); The Chairman of the Ceylon Petroleum Corporation warned that the CPC losses have increased after Lanka IOC increased fuel prices this week.CPC Chairman Attorney-at-Law Sumith Wijesinghe told reporters that if the prices for February continue uncharged for the entire month, the CPC will suffer a loss of Rs. 48.30/- per liter of Diesel, while Rs.

COLOMBO (News 1st); Sri Lanka’s Energy Minister Udaya Gammanpila said that Lanka IOC had done a favor to the Ceylon Petroleum Corporation by increasing fuel prices.Sri Lanka’s LIOC, raised petrol 92-Octane by Rs. 7/- to Rs.

COLOMBO (News 1st); Sri Lanka’s Public Utilities Commission said that the Ceylon Electricity Board has not requested permission for scheduled power cuts on Monday (7).However, the Ceylon Electricity Board noted that there may be power cuts if power plants run out of fuel or encounter a technical issue.Janaka Ratnayake, the Chairman of PUCSL said according to the available data is evident that the power generation is sufficient for the day and power cuts are unlikely for the next two days if sufficient fuel stocks are delivered.Sri Lanka’s Energy Minister Udaya Gammanpila noted that fuel was provided to the CEB even after the agreed period for fuel delivery expired.‘The CEB publicly said that they would obtain fuel from IOC and India,’ said the Minister adding the CPC delivered fuel stocks to last for 10 days instead of 7 as requested by the CEB.The Minister further said that the Energy Minister has no issue if the CEB is in talks with IOC orr is making emergency purchases for electricity.

COLOMBO (News 1st); Sri Lankan Energy Minister Udaya Gammanpila had announced a 5-point proposal to overcome the economic crisis that has plagued the island nation for over a year.“The only way we can overcome this situation is if the whole of Sri Lanka decided to make purchases locally as true Sri Lankans,” said the Minister on Sunday (6).The 5-point process mentioned by the Minister is as follows.1. Accept there is an issue.2.

COLOMBO (News 1st); Sri Lanka’s Minister of Energy Udaya Gammanpila says the government had decided to make a USD payment to two oil tankers anchored at the Colombo Port.“Therefore, there will be no power cuts,” said Minister Gammanpila on Monday (24).He said at a meeting with respective stakeholders it was agreed that if payment is made to one of the oil tankers, the Ceylon Petroleum Corporation will be able to deliver Diesel to the WestCoast Power Plant instead of Furnace Oil, and deliver Furnace Oil to the Sapugaskanda Power Plant.Therefore, we can deliver the Diesel and Furnace Oil for electricity Generation.Further, the President had instructed the Treasury to release necessary funds to the Ceylon Electricity Board to settle its Rs. 93 Billion debt to the Ceylon Petroleum Corporation, he said.The Minister further added that the Sapugaskanda Power Plant will be able to recommence generating electricity by the 30th of January 2022.

COLOMBO (News 1st); The Ceylon Electricity Board Engineers Association on Sunday (23) warned that there will be four-phase power cuts with effect from Monday (24). However, it is due time to examine the different views of parties involved in the power crisis.What is the current fuel status of power plants?Sapugaskanda has come to a standstill due to lack of oil, and according to the trade unions, the power plant has less than 24 hours to run on fuel.Meanwhile, the Yugadanavi power plant has fuel for only 10 days.What does the Minister of Energy say about this?The Energy Minister, Udaya Gammanpila stated on Sunday (23) that the stocks of fuel have been depleted due to a weakness in the CEB’s calculations.The Minister said that the CEB had requested the Ceylon Petroleum Corporation to supply only enough fuel for 10 days.Minister Gammanpila also stated that the stock of fuel was handed over to the CEB last week as agreed during the discussion held with the President’s participation.Moreover, Minister Udaya Gammanpila added that a ship carrying 37,500 metric tons of diesel has arrived near the Sri Lankan sea border.He also said that fuel could be supplied to the CEB if the relevant stock of diesel is released after obtaining dollars.What does the Minister of Power say?Power Minister Gamini Lokuge said that the CEB is currently managing the fuel stocks it has received so far.The Minister of Power and Energy also stated that due to this, there will be no need for a power cut from next Tuesday (25) onwards.However, the Unions state something completely different.Ananda Palitha, the  Media Spokesperson of the United Trade Union Force revealed that the Petroleum Corporation is the sole supplier to supply on demand.

COLOMBO (News 1st); The Ceylon Electricity Board Engineers Association on Sunday (23) warned that there will be four-phase power cuts with effect from Monday (24). However, it is due time to examine the different views of parties involved in the power crisis.What is the current fuel status of power plants?Sapugaskanda has come to a standstill due to lack of oil, and according to the trade unions, the power plant has less than 24 hours to run on fuel.Meanwhile, the Yugadanavi power plant has fuel for only 10 days.What does the Minister of Energy say about this?The Energy Minister, Udaya Gammanpila stated on Sunday (23) that the stocks of fuel have been depleted due to a weakness in the CEB’s calculations.The Minister said that the CEB had requested the Ceylon Petroleum Corporation to supply only enough fuel for 10 days.Minister Gammanpila also stated that the stock of fuel was handed over to the CEB last week as agreed during the discussion held with the President’s participation.Moreover, Minister Udaya Gammanpila added that a ship carrying 37,500 metric tons of diesel has arrived near the Sri Lankan sea border.He also said that fuel could be supplied to the CEB if the relevant stock of diesel is released after obtaining dollars.What does the Minister of Power say?Power Minister Gamini Lokuge said that the CEB is currently managing the fuel stocks it has received so far.The Minister of Power and Energy also stated that due to this, there will be no need for a power cut from next Tuesday (25) onwards.However, the Unions state something completely different.Ananda Palitha, the  Media Spokesperson of the United Trade Union Force revealed that the Petroleum Corporation is the sole supplier to supply on demand.

COLOMBO (News 1st); Sri Lanka’s Energy Minister Udaya Gammanpila said the Central Bank of Sri Lanka had released US Dollars to the Ministry on Tuesday (18) to secure the delivery from two fuel tankers that were anchored off Colombo.“The consignment contains over 37,000 MT of Diesel and the Ceylon Petroleum Corporation (CPC) will deliver 10,000 MT for electricity generation,” he told the weekly Cabinet Media Briefing on Wednesday (19), adding that this stock will be sufficient for a period of 8 days.He also that Sri Lanka’s power generation crisis that should have been solved internally between the Ministries of Power and Energy, has unfortunately spilled into the public domain.“All the allegations and issues could have been raised internally and the solution made public,” said the Minister.He also added that NO proposal was made to change the standards of the fuel delivered to Sri Lanka, adding that these are matters spread across social media platforms by those who wish to generate profits from Diesel.“Some may be mixing other fuel, like Kerosene, to generate more profits,” he said adding that if a person has been victimized via such measures, one must immediately notify the Ceylon Petroleum Corporation over the matter.He said that Sri Lanka’s fuel stocks fluctuate every week, and there will be shipments coming in every week to Sri Lanka, and dismissed claims that Sri Lanka is losing fuel stocks by the day.

COLOMBO (News 1st); Sri Lanka’s Energy Minister Udaya Gammanpila has warned that if the fuel imported to the country is released to the Ceylon Electricity Board for electricity generation, there will be a shortage of fuel for vehicles.“We were compelled to reach a decision to only release fuel to the CEB if they deliver payment in USD,” the Minister told News 1st adding that Sri Lanka does not have oil deposits or large stocks of fuel to be given to the CEB.“We can only procure fuel for the CEB if they can provide us with payment in USD,” he said.The Ceylon Petroleum Corporation has already delivered 1,500 metric tons of diesel per day in the last two days.“At present, there are two tankers anchored at sea with a total of 76,000 MT of diesel. If the (CEB) can provide us with the US Dollars to unload one of them, we can deliver diesel to the Ceylon Electricity Board,” he told News 1st while denying that he will be held accountable for any power-cuts that may arise over the shortage of fuel to generate electricity.Minister Gammanpila said he is NOT vested with the responsibility of sourcing US Dollars for the country, adding that he has no power to even print US dollars.“The issue is not the fact that the CEB owes the CPC over Rs.

COLOMBO (News 1st); Sri Lankan authorities will meet on Tuesday (18) to discuss the procurement of fuel for an uninterruptible power supply to the island nation.The Ceylon Electricity Board told News 1st that the existing stocks of fuel will only be sufficient to generate electricity until Tuesday (18) morning.On Saturday (15) the Ceylon Petroleum Corporation supplied 3,000 MT of Diesel to the Ceylon Electricity Board for power generation, and the CPC said the fuel was released considering it as an urgent requirement.Minister of Energy Udaya Gammanpila said if the Ceylon Electricity Board needs fuel continuously, it must provide US dollars to the Ceylon Petroleum Corporation.The Minister said if the CEB provides the dollars, the Ministry of Energy is prepared to import and supply the required stocks of fuel for power generation.Minister Gammanpila noted that amidst the prevailing dollar crisis in the country, the CPC goes through serious difficulties to earn USD $400 million every month, to ensure the adequate supply of fuel stocks required for transportation and other industries.He said the Ministry of Energy informed the CEB three months ago that if they require fuel for power generation, they should inform in advance.However, according to the Energy Minister, the CEB has informed the CPC on the 11th of January that they require Diesel from the 13th of January.Minister Gammanpila said the CPC does not possess additional stocks of Diesel to supply on such short notice.He emphasized that the Ceylon Petroleum Corporation is ready to import and supply fuel if the Ceylon Electricity Board provides the necessary dollars, adding that the CEB can also directly import fuel by themselves.

COLOMBO (News 1st); Sri Lanka’s President Gotabaya Rajapaksa emphasizes that solutions for the electricity crisis should be sought without hindering the people’s daily life.In a backdrop where the island nation is facing an imminent power shortage, the Head of State spoke to the heads of the Power and Energy sectors at the Presidential Secretariat on Monday (10), said the President’s Media Division in a press release.Officials pointed out that the root cause of the current crisis is the issues prevalent in generating electricity through coal and fossil fuel.Sri Lanka’s coal reserves are sufficient as well as in good maintenance and if the fossil fuel power generating sector is managed well, the country can survive an impending power cut, said the officials.The Subject Ministers noted that all measures have been taken to manage the daily life of the general public during the current situation of the country.Ministers Gamini Lokuge, Udaya Gammanpila, Governor of the Central Bank Ajith Nivard Cabraal, State Minister Duminda Dissanayake, Secretary to the President P. B.

COLOMBO (News 1st): Sri Lanka’s Cabinet of Minister has approved the proposal for a new deal to jointly develop the Trincomalee oil tank farm with India.The Cabinet of Ministers approved to allocate 24 oil tanks for the business activities of the Ceylon Petroleum Corporation and to allocate 14 tanks of the Lower Oil Tank Complex already in use by Lanka IOC for the company’s business activities.The Cabinet also approved to implement a development project by a company named Trinco Petroleum Terminal Pvt.

COLOMBO (News 1st); The government has not engaged in any discussion with regard to the Provincial Council elections, said Minister Udaya Gammanpila on Tuesday (4).Speaking during the weekly Cabinet Media Briefing, the Minister said that the government of Sri Lanka is not being influenced by any country, to call for elections for the Provincial Councils.“We will not be subject to any such influence,” he said adding that the government introduced a series of concessions to bring some form of relief to the people.

COLOMBO (News 1st) ; Sri Lanka’s Energy Minister Udaya Gammanpila said that a subsidiary company of the Ceylon Petroleum Corporation (CPC) was set up with regard to the development of the Trincomalee oil tank farm.Gammanpila earlier said that this subsidiary will be named the Trinco Petroleum Terminal Ltd.In a month’s time, Sri Lanka will ink the long-dragging deal with India to jointly develop the Trincomalee oil tank farms, Sri Lanka’s Energy Minister Udaya Gammanpila had told India’s The Hindu.

In a month’s time, Sri Lanka will ink the long-dragging deal with India to jointly develop the Trincomalee oil tank farms, Sri Lanka’s Energy Minister Udaya Gammanpila had told India’s The Hindu.The Minister had noted that the relevant documentation will be submitted at the next Cabinet meeting.The Minister said he has instructed the Ceylon Petroleum Corporation (CPC) to form a subsidiary company, Trinco Petroleum Terminal Ltd., for the purpose.The move follows President Gotabaya Rajapaksa’s nod to set up the special purpose vehicle ahead of the next Cabinet meeting, reported The Hindu.“We don’t have a Cabinet meeting this week because of the holidays. We will get the decision ratified in the next one,” Mr.