Dr Sarath Obeysekera

In 1989, five years after returning to Sri Lanka from the United Kingdom and Norway, where I had worked on offshore oil and gas projects in the North Sea, an unexpected opportunity changed the course of my life.

One afternoon, a friend visited my home and asked whether I would be interested in heading a government institution known as the Road Development Authority. At the age of 39, with a background in mechanical engineering rather than civil engineering, I was surprised by the suggestion. Nevertheless, I believed that management, discipline, and integrity were more important than professional labels, and I agreed.

My name was forwarded to the President. However, I later learned that the Secretary to the Ministry of Highways was not enthusiastic about the appointment and was reluctant to accept me as chairman.

Weeks passed. Then I received a message from the Secretary to the Treasury asking me to come to the President’s Office.

At that time, I had never been involved in politics. I had never met the President, nor had I met the Secretary to the Treasury. Wearing my best suit, I arrived at the President’s Office and waited nervously in the reception area.

Soon, the Secretary opened the door and called my name.

I walked into the President’s office. The President was seated with his senior secretary. He looked up and asked a simple question.

How old are you?”

Thirty-nine, Sir,” I replied.

He paused for a moment and then asked, Can you run the Colombo Land Development Board, which was later renamed the Sri Lanka Land Reclamation and Development Corporation?”

Throughout my professional career, I had never been in the habit of saying, I will try.” Instead, I answered confidently:

Yes, Sir.”

The President then instructed me to read the Act governing the institution and prepare to take over.

Within a week, my appointment letter arrived. A driver was sent to my house to take me to the Corporation’s office at Almanat Building, where I officially assumed duties as Chairman.

The very next morning, while being driven to the office, I noticed one of the Corporation’s tractors hauling a trailer full of earth at around seven o’clock in the morning.

I asked my driver to stop.

Opening the car window, I called the tractor operator and asked where he was taking the soil so early in the day.

Unaware that I was the newly appointed Chairman, he casually asked me whether I wanted some soil delivered privately.

I smiled and replied, I’ll let you know.”

Later that morning, I instructed security personnel to bring him to my office.

The poor fellow arrived visibly shaken when he discovered who I was. Rather than punish him immediately, I decided to let him go with a stern warning.

By then, word had already begun to spread throughout the organization that a new chairman had arrived with a determination to run a clean and disciplined institution.

That incident taught me my first lesson in leadership: people must know that integrity begins at the top.

The second lesson came only a few days later.

The Commissioner of Bribery contacted me personally to congratulate me on my appointment. During the conversation, she informed me that the Corporation’s Land Manager had allegedly solicited a bribe from her husband.

I immediately called the manager to my office.

Prepared in advance was a letter of resignation.

I confronted him directly and informed him that he had two choices: sign the resignation letter or face formal investigation by the Bribery Commission.

After a tense silence, he signed.

He then requested permission to return to his office to collect his personal belongings.

Instead, I instructed security officers to escort him directly out of the building.

The message was unmistakable.

Corruption would not be tolerated.

These early incidents marked the beginning of an extraordinary journey in public administration. Although I came from an engineering background, I quickly discovered that managing people was far more challenging than managing machines.

Technical knowledge can build roads, reclaim land, and construct infrastructure. But leadership requires courage, fairness, decisiveness, and the willingness to make difficult decisions when necessary.

My appointment by the President was not merely a career opportunity. It was a test of character.

Looking back today, I consider those experiences among the most valuable lessons of my professional life. They taught me that institutions can only be transformed when leaders are prepared to lead by example.

Sri Lanka’s public sector possesses immense talent and potential. What it requires is honest leadership, accountability, and the determination to place national interest above personal gain.

That was the principle I tried to uphold throughout my years of service to this country.

Regards

Dr Sarath Obeysekera