After a certain victory in the north, lovable General Denzil Kobbekaduwa came running and embraced him with fatherly affection. Before that the genial General shouted “Yako Gota umba hari yakek ne (Gota you did it)” He was the chosen one even then. Chosen one of the two most loved Generals of our times General Denzil Kobbekaduwa and Vijaya Wimalaratne.
Not only them, this battle hardened officer was loved by another no nonsense politician of our times, UNP minister of National Security, Ranjan Wijeratne. He did not want Gotabaya to leave the Army then. But, Ranjan knew that his hands were tied and it was no easy task to hold back officers like Gotabaya who had fought for the country for 20 long years. Though Ranjan wanted to end the war his leader at the time was not ready for it neither did they have a strategy to defeat the LTTE.
Though the cheap politician in Sarath Fonseka made vain and cheap attempts insult his former boss Gotabaya Rajapaksa during the elections, everyone including Ranjan Wijeratne knew that it was not possible to beat the LTTE then since he did not have wholehearted support and the leadership required. Let us also not forget that Army Commander General Sarath Fonseka never blamed or accused Gotabaya Rajapaksa. He was only full of praise and said the country couldn’t have done without Gotabaya.
Fighting went on. We lost out a lot to LTTE terror. Gotabaya and several good officers left the island. Some retired, some left the three forces, and some perished in vain. But, they left their hearts and souls in Sri Lanka , waiting for a time to return and put an end to terror. Yes. They waited and waited.
Gotabaya was never flashy person. He was simple and very humble. A family man who never even ate cake because he is a true vegetarian. His wife Ayoma is a charming and a simple lady, who stood by him then and now, with all her simplicity. They continue to live that simple life. Meet him and you will understand. I had the honour of meeting him along with several others during a Api Wenuwen Api function.
Their wait was long. The country waited. But, the believable change happened only when Mahinda Rajapaksa won against all odds and predictions defeating a weak Ranil Wickermasinghe who had left his heart in some foreign land. . Mahinda knew he could defeat terrorism and put an end to the misery Sri Lankans were going through. Gotabaya had returned to help his brother during the campaign and concentrated in the Kurunegala district. He had mobilised them well and people in Kurunegala rallied behind Gotabaya to make his brother the President of Sri Lanka.
Only correct decision Chandrika made during her tenure was to make Lakshman Kadirgamar the Foreign Minister of Sri Lanka. Mahinda Rajapaksa made such a decision with the appointment of Gotabaya as the Secretary Defence. But, unlike the voluntary 2nd Lt Anuruddha Ratwatte, who accepted a Generalship and wore all kinds of uniforms and ridiculed the three forces, Gotabaya a battle hardened soldier decided to be a civilian Defence Secretary. Let us remember it.
It was a time the Sri Lankan forces had lost heavily men, equipment, morale and the propaganda war to the LTTE. The army could not even recruit adequate soldiers. Using his skills, Gotabaya started the Defence website which became an instant hit and counted the LTTE propaganda worldwide. It gave the true picture to the world whilst Tamilnet continued with its anti Sri Lankan propaganda. With the Api Wenuwen Api campaign Gotabaya Rajapaksa boosted the morale of the forces and the masses and people started to rejoin the army in large numbers.
There was a time when the Army failed to attract even 2000 to join the army. But, it was Gotabaya morale booster where he created welfare funds, housing projects for the forces, schools for their kids, proper place in the society which saw large numbers joining three forces and the police. We are told that he personally supervised them.
Gotabaya also made the forces high tech as never before. Many officers and soldiers who joined hands to defeat the LTTE paid tribute to the Defence Secretary for his vision which saved many lives. The Defence Secretary took care of the forces like a father would do. President Mahinda Rajapaksa had faith in that caring Defence Secretary brother of his and provided everything he could to save and protect his motherland.
People like Anuruddha Ratwatte, Chandrananda de Silva and Austin Fernando could not tell the difference between a real gun and a toy gun, they could not care for the rank and file. But, President Rajapaksa and the Forces had a man who really knew it, who was there in the heart of the battle field and cared for them.
He saw to the welfare of the forces. They were well looked after. He joined the three forces and the Police together at checkpoints and other areas when dealings with civilians. He improved the intelligence service tremendously which was considered very weak at the time. That was a high point of the countries victory against LTTE.
I have seen several articles by Dr Rohan Guneratne asking the country to improve the Intelligence operations saying it will lead to successful eliminating of the LTTE. Gotabaya did it. Let us not forget that he had a very tough task after Ranil Wickermasinghe and John Amaratunge’s foolish actions with the Millennium City debacle killed over 60 Intelligence officers of the Sri Lanka Army.
I would like to say that Sri Lanka should try Wickermasinghe and Amaratunge for it. They can reserve a room next to Sarath Fonseka or may be even Welikada for it. General Lionel Balagalle, General Hendavitharana and the families of all those Intelligence officers (mainly Tamil, Muslim and Malay) will say YES to it. The defence ministry which looked like an old Katchcheri looked like a defence ministry.
Unlike the previous Defence Secretaries he reached out to the masses. Because he could communicate. Gotabaya spoke from the heart. A BBC correspondent in Sri Lanka at the time had described Gotabaya as “Very refreshing” because he was sincere, frank and honest. He continues to be so even today though his detractors try to castigate him. Check why he gets angry?
ONLY when the forces are attacked and his country is looked down and betrayed. We have read in the media how Gotabaya gave a piece of his mind to the Foreign Minister for France, Bernard Kutchner. All for the sake of Sri Lanka.
Mahinda Rajapaksa gave the leadership as the Commander in Chief and his brother Defence Secretary as the head of the defence establishment led the war effort. It was no easy task for him to keep together Sarath Fonseka his Army Commander who refused to speak with his old classmate Admiral Wasantha Karannagoda. (We are told it was due to a difference they had at a swimming meet in Ananda.) But, Gotabaya kept them together He deserves a gold medal for it. He had to do the balancing act because he was well focused to end terrorism from the island nation.
Finally the country was doing well and defeating the LTTE. The opposition saw the winning team and started to target Gotabaya Rajapaksa. Only Gotabaya and his family know what insult the man had to undergo for spearheading the war effort. We are told his simplicity and discipline made him withstood all that. He also knew that he earned the love from the masses. Many say that they have seen tears in his eyes and how he had reached out to help the needy, when in trouble. He must be the only public official in recent times who decided to take a newspaper to court to clear his name. A friend of his said “He got nothing to hide. He will not hide anything. It pains him when people make false accusations. He got only the country at his heart.”
When you know the man you will know who really is. He does not wear a mask. He is who he is. He will be who he is. The man who loves Sri Lanka more than he cares for himself. People who criticize him today should know that they have failed to do an inch of what Gotabaya has done for Sri Lanka. He is a simple but a true hero.
Gotabaya's imprint on Sri Lanka will remain . No one will be able to erase it because his imprints are not mere foot prints in the sands of time.
By Ranmali Fernando
By Courtesy of www.transcurrents.com
20 February, 2010
Few good comments:
IF THERE WAS NO PEOPLE LIKE GOTABAYA AND MAHINDA JOINT TOGETHER WE WOULD NEVER HAVE BEEN ABLE TO DEFET TERRARISM SF CANNOT DO NOTHING IF THE LEADERSHIP CRUMBLED LIKE RANIL WITH INTERNATIONAL PRESSURE WE DID IT AND THE NATION SALUTE MAHINDA AND GOTABAYA THE MOST WITH AND ALL THE SECURITY FORCES. SO NO ONE CAN DENY THE CREDIT TO MAHINDA AND GOTABAYA FOR SURE.
Posted by: Anonymous
February 20, 2010 08:55 PM
It is my pleasure to thank the father of MR, Gota and Basil for the raise and educate of these brave Sinhalese heroes to our country. I humbly honored them and proposed to add their names to the Sri Lanka history. The unity and the family binding empowered these heroes to build the thrust without fear to administer the war defeating strategy and crush the LTTE terror force. Some folks have misunderstanding due to anti party politic criticism. This is time for you to memorise the tragic death of General Denzil Kobbekaduwa; he could not get this type of support; that was the main reason he lost his life and his battalion. So thanks to Rajapaksa family you did it.
Posted by: Somachandra Mutukuda
February 20, 2010 08:55 PM
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We totally agree with the author that Mr. Gothabaya Rajapaksa is a true hero. He is a very brave leader. There is no reason to exaggerate his service to our motherland. Only traitors, Tiger sympathizers, and Western politicians who can not tolerate his strait policies hate him very much. Current JVP leaders and brainwashed some JVP members also harshly criticize him (Mainly mud slinging) because of the jealousy and to fulfill the contract given by their Western Masters.
By Chinthaka.
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