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| Sunday, 6 March 2005 |
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| News Business Features Editorial
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CWE Retail in crisis by L.S.A. Wedaarachchi CWE Retail, the privatised arm of the food and essential items retail sales network is in crisis. While the private sector supermarkets are expanding islandwide, the number of CWE retail shops is diminishing and some shops face a serious situation due to the scarcity of items. A top CWE supermarket in the CCC building at Sir James Peiris Road, in front of the Beira Lake and CWE retail shop at D.R. Wijewardene Mawatha were closed recently. According to a spokesman for the Trade Union Federation of the CWE, five shops out of one-hundred-and-fifty had been already closed and sixty-seven shops have been earmarked for closure in the near future. Most of the CWE retail shops face a shortage of items, he said. A spokesman for the Trade Ministry said the total responsibility of the management of the CWE retail chain comes under the purview of the private sector management which consists of three private sector companies namely Richard Peiris and Co., Ceylon Biscuits Company and Ceylon Brewery Ltd., which bought 40 per cent of CWE shares at a cost of Rs. 680 million. At present the CWE retail network has 3,410 employees. Employees are apprehensive about their future in view of the current predicament of the CWE. The CWE Trade Union Federation has called upon the government to take over the CWE retail network again and safeguard their employment. General Manager of the CWE retail networks S. Lakshmansinghe said that the supermarkets at D.R. Wijewardene Mawatha and the one in front of the Beira Lake were taken back by the landlords. The closure was brought about as a result, he said. He was however, reluctant to discuss details of business of supermarkets and other related matters and advised me to contact Pravir Samarasinghe - one of the Directors representing Richard Peiris and Co., on the CWE Directorate. Samarasinghe was not available for comment. Minister of Trade, Commerce and Consumer Affairs, Jeyaraj Fernandopulle recently said in a radio interview that he is not willing to take over the CWE retail network unless cabinet gives its approval to do so. He said that according to information available the CWE retail network has faced a financial crisis and added that some suppliers have to be given their dues by CWE retail network. Emphasizing the value of an organisation such as the CWE, Minister Fernandopulle said a better service could have been done in regard to the distribution of food and essential items, as done in the past, when the country faced a serious situation after the tsunami devastation. He said the previous regime is totally responsible for the present state of affairs as well as the serious problems faced by CWE retail network today. |
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