Centenary birth anniversary of first Lankan-born CCC Chairman falls today
Thursday, 9 April 2015 00:32
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The centenary birth anniversary of the late S.T.L. de Soysa, who was the first Sri Lankan-born Chairman of the Ceylon Chamber of Commerce, falls on 9 April.
De Soysa, who led the Ceylon Chamber of Commerce from 1959 to 1962, was appointed to head the institute when it was decided that leadership should pass into the hands of national businessmen, as with independence and the increasing role of Sri Lankans in business the time was right for such a move.
The choice of the first Sri Lankan Chairman was crucial because the Chamber had traditions and standards which were worth preserving, while infusing a more national outlook as times changed. The hour produced a man who was a perfect fit for the role.
The history of the Ceylon Chamber of Commerce records that De Soysa achieved the transition from English to Sri Lankan leadership gracefully and seamlessly.
“The role played by leaders like Mr. Terence De Soysa has given the Chamber the required impetus to become the influential institution which it is today,” said CEO/Secretary General of the Ceylon Chamber of Commerce Mangala P.B. Yapa.
“The Ceylon Chamber always makes sure to remember the great services rendered by eminent persons like Mr. De Soysa, when we go down memory lane,” Yapa added.
Soysa was a key figure behind the Rubber for Rice Pact between China and Ceylon, which has stood for three decades and proved of great mutual benefit for the two countries.
Seven decades before Terence De Soysa was elected as the first Chairman of the Ceylon Chamber of Commerce, his grandfather Charles Henry De Soysa became the first Ceylonese member of the Chamber in 1890.
