Those against celebrating Independence have no patriotism – Manusha

Labour and Foreign Employment Minister Manusha Nanayakkara said that people who have no sense of patriotism are those who are against celebrating independence.

Minister Nanayakkara said this while launching the ‘Let’s Start with Me’ national programme at the Youth Convention at the Anuradhapura Youth Centre on Saturday.

The Minister said some people commemorate the killing of people in ’88/’89 with a ceremony called the ‘Ill Maha Samaruwa’, but the same people criticize the celebrating of independence.

Before the launch of the ‘Let’s Start with Me’ national programme, the Minister placed a garland on the statue of D.S. Senanayake. Recalling that Sri Lanka today has a leader like King Kashyapa, a king who brings dollars to the country, the Minister said that President Ranil Wickremesinghe is a leader who can develop the country through technology like King Kashyapa.

The Minister further said: “It is important for us to look good on the outside as well as on the inside. Only you can do that. The Government cannot do that. To change, you have to first start with yourself.

“A mindset was created that it is okay to just stay idle and take what is given from a third source. With this another set of heroes were born who promised to give things free. They said they would give seeds free and a loaf of bread for Rs.3.50.

“Today, a group of people who are overseas are becoming heroes through Facebook. They either take money from others and distribute it, or threaten people and force their opinions on others. Today, social media has made a few crazy people, heroes.

“They are always trying to keep us in a mindset of being poor. Let’s go beyond that. Even if we don’t have money, we need to get rid of the ‘poor’ mentality. It has to start with oneself. When the mind is enriched, it becomes easier to improve the quality of life.

“The place of birth is not that important for a person to rise in life. We have to think about what we want. So we have to start with ourselves.

“When the water bill increases a little, we shout at the Government. These things happen because of our mindset. We blame ourselves for our mistakes and all 225 Parliamentarians all the time without developing discipline and without thinking properly.

“But if we develop our self-discipline and financial discipline, we can improve a lot. Blaming others is useless. We should be mentally prepared for the future. To get there we need to change our mindset.

“All civilizations started in the plains. But our civilization started in the mountains. Finally, a big city is built in Anuradhapura. A unique irrigation system was built. We had such strong people. We have the ‘Ranmasu Uyana’ in Sigiriya. It was a place where gold was traded.

“We were taught that Kashyapa killed his father. But didn’t Kashyapa use irrigation technology to create Sigiriya? So can you imagine that Kashyapa got angry when his father showed him water? Kashyapa, who created Sigiriya, which brings foreign exchange to the country, was made a father-killer by history. Even today, those who do something beneficial for the country are slandered.

“It is good to commemorate the killing of people during ’88/’89 through the ‘Ill Maha Samaruwa’, but it is wrong to celebrate freedom and independence. At no time did anyone talk about the money lost when buses and houses were set on fire. The people who say not to celebrating national festivals are those who have no sense of nationalism.

We now have a king like Kashyapa who brings dollars to the country. We have a leader who can use and develop technology like Kashyapa to usher in a digital transformation. That leader is our current President Ranil Wickremesinghe. You also have a responsibility to help him to develop the country. So without waiting for help to come from the Government or from anywhere else, start from yourself.

“Start your own business. A system should be created while preserving our religion and culture. We have to change our mindset and think out of the box.

“Like our past great leaders, today we have Ranil Wickremesinghe to lead Sri Lanka to victory. “So from today, you all start a new beginning, start it with yourself.”

The post Those against celebrating Independence have no patriotism – Manusha appeared first on DailyNews.