Damaged vehicle issue pushed to president

By Uditha Jayasinghe

As thousands of substandard fuel damaged vehicle owners await compensation from the government the Ceylon Motor Traders’ Association (CMTA) yesterday stated that they would appeal to President Mahinda Rajapaksa if their concerns were not alleviated.

CMTA President Thilak Gunasekera told the Daily FT that the organisation was besieged with calls from the owners as well as the general public on what steps to take to gain compensation for their damaged vehicles. However the Ceylon Petroleum Corporation (CPC) was being tight lipped about the payments despite Petroleum Resources Minister Susil Premajayanth making a public statement that the damage would be made good by the government.

Several hotlines that were established by the CPC also evoked the ire of the public after they failed to function.

“We have repeatedly written to the CPC Chairman demanding to know what steps were being taken by the organisation to release these promised funds to the public. However our letters have gone unanswered,” remarked a disgruntled Gunasekera adding that a call to the CPC revealed that the matter had been passed onto the marketing manager.

“We sent a letter to the CPC chairman asking for a meeting but were met with no response. All we are trying to do is enlighten the public as is our duty. We have the right to an explanation as to how this fuel was purchased and subsequently released to the market causing damage to the unsuspecting vehicle owners. We are disappointed that the authorities are not dealing with this matter in an efficient and transparent manner.”

Accusing the CPC of “not being accountable” Gunasekera observed that the next option open to them would be to appeal to Premajayanth, failing which they would place their grievances before President Mahinda Rajapaksa. “These top office holders do not even have the courtesy to reply a letter,” the irked CMTA President stressed.

The organisation has not yet estimated the cost of the damage but plan to do so and release the amount next month. Around 2000 vehicles are reported to have been damaged but no official numbers are yet available.  

Meanwhile the Minister last week appointed a committee to probe the fuel purchase that allegedly circumvented tender procedure but no findings have yet been made public.