“Prove you are an asset to the nation”: Basil

Economic Development Minister Basil Rajapaksa said the Government would give all assistance to the 15,596 graduates recruited by his Ministry to ensure their job security and opportunities to rise to the highest ranks in public service.  They have been trained as leaders in the development process to make Sri Lanka a poverty-free country by the year 2016.

Minister Rajapaksa gave this assurance when he addressed a meeting held on 9 April in connection with the passing parade of the first batch of trainee development officers following a two-week leadership training course which began at 16 centres on 28 March.

Explaining the Government’s policy on recruiting 52,721 graduates to the public service under the President’s guidance, the Minister said if each officer working for the Economic Development Ministry takes steps to raise the economic level of one poor family it would be a major contribution to reach the target of reducing poverty in the country within three years thereby making Sri Lanka the ‘Wonder of Asia’.

The Economic Development Ministry made arrangements to hold two-week residential workshops for these graduates undergoing training as Development Officers.  The 15,596 graduates – divided into three groups of 5,150 each – are being trained at 16 centres in three stages. The first stage commenced on 25 March, the second will start on 18 April and continue till 5 May.  The third will be from 18 May to 24 May.  Each workshop will have 150 trainees.  71% of the total number of trainees are women while 29% are men.

Ceremonies in connection with the completion of training of the first batch of graduates were held at the 16 training centres on 9 April. Several of these centres were inspected by Minister Basil Rajapaksa. He had cordial discussions with the newly appointed officers who were trained at the Sri Lanka Navy training school Thalathuoya, Kandy, Sri Lanka Electrical and Mechanical Engineers Gannoruwa, Peradeniya, Sri Lanka Signals training school Boowelikada, Kandy and National Cadet Corps Headquarters Rantembe, Randenigala.

The aim of this training course has been to give the Development Officers a basic knowledge of working as facilitators in implementing rural development program to eradicate poverty by strengthening the family and the village. They have been given a comprehensive knowledge of the Divi Neguma National Program at these workshops. The officers will be expected to take the lead in eradicating poverty by economically empowering the individual and thereby the family and the village in accordance with the ‘Mahinda Chinthana’ manifesto.

Speaking at the ceremony marking the passing out parade, the Minister said that recruiting 52,721 educated young people to the public service simultaneously is not a burden on the State but a great asset. Therefore it is the duty of both people’s representatives and senior State officials to utilise the services of these new recruits for economic progress.

During the inspection, he recalled that about a year ago a group of graduates had met President Mahinda Rajapaksa at the Katuwana Fair and requested that their knowledge and services be utilised for national development. Those days some people had said that if the government recruited these young people they would become a burden on the State. But the President considered them as an asset to the State and the country and therefore wanted arrangements to be made for recruiting them to the public service. Accordingly steps were taken to assign one graduate officer to each of the 14,000 Grama Niladhari divisions island-wide.

Since our armed forces have the experience of defeating the world’s most brutal terrorists who had naval and air power it was decided the military were the best people to give the young graduates the training necessary to achieve targets, according to the Minister. Hence he appealed to the officers to go to the villages and prove they are indeed an asset to the State and the country.

Thalathuoya Sri Lanka Navy Training School Commander K.A. Kuruppu, Gannoruwa Sri Lanka Electrical and Mechanical Engineers Lt. Colonel Sanjay Pathirana and Rantembe Sri Lanka National Cadet Training Centre Major-General Gamini Jayasundara were among the large crowd present at the ceremony.