Skanda nominated as High Commissioner for Australia

A well-known cricketing personality and businessman, Somasundaram Skandakumar, has been nominated as the new High Commissioner to Australia.

Skandakumar, who is originally from Jaffna and a former Secretary of the Sri Lanka Cricket Board, was the former Chairman of the George Stuart Group of Companies.

He served the company for 34 years, functioning as Managing Director for three of them and Chairman for another eight until his retirement in 2008.

Skandakumar, an Old boy of Royal College in Colombo, was an outstanding cricketer at school, Colombo University and Tamil Union.

A spokesperson for Sri Lanka’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs has confirmed to Australian media that the Parliament has been asked to approve Skandakumar for the position in Australia.

Skandakumar will be appointed after the Cabinet approves his nomination. Australia must also accept his nomination before he can assume the role.

The post of High Commissioner in Canberra became vacant when the new Government, during the early part of this year, recalled all the politically-appointed diplomats of the previous Government.

The former High Commissioner to Australia, Admiral (Retd.) Thisara Samarasinghe was the Commander of the Sri Lanka Navy from July 2009 to January 2015.