Mr. Janaka Ratnayake, Chairman of the Public Utilities Commission, stated today (16) afternoon that the rest of the members of the Public Utilities Commission met in the wrong way and illegally raised the electricity tariff without understanding it and without much consideration of the calculations, and that as chairman, I will take all legal measures against it.
He also stated that the meeting that approved the increase in electricity tariffs was held without the required quorum.
Mr. Rathnayaka also stated that the procedure for amending the electricity bill is clearly stated in the Act, and that in 2008, the Supreme Court rejected an incorrectly amended electricity bill by the Electricity Board.
He stated that low-income consumers should be given concessions, and that such a decision cannot be made by the Electricity Board, but rather by the Public Utilities Commission.
Mr. Ratnayake stated that he had no objections to the court’s order to seal his office and that it was an excellent order. He also stated that if this were not the case, a third party would have planted something in his office and caught him.
He also expressed gratitude to the Police OIC and the political authorities for sealing the office. He stated that he never used government tables and chairs as a matter of policy, and that everything else in the sealed office belonged to the government.
Mr. Janaka Ratnayake, who is currently abroad, stated this this afternoon (16) during a press conference via ‘Zoom’ technology.
