Lieutenant General Crishanthe De Silva, Commander of the Army Monday (29) morning for the second time after he assumed office, addressed a representative gathering of about 175 senior officers of the Army Headquarters and those serving nearby formations.
Lieutenant General De Silva, specific in his articulation throughout the near one-hour address, did not mince words to speak out his thoughts on a couple of areas of relevance to the Senior Officers.
His elaborate comments and articulations covered a wide spectrum of issues arising out of efforts to sustain the reputation of the organization, maintenance of strict discipline code, sustained training for officers, selection criteria for training for both local and foreign courses, degree of competence, modernizing of the Army, enhancement of professionalism, drawbacks in performances and lack of communication, flow, changing military scenarios, career prospects, Army rules and regulations, individual responsibilities and beneficiaries of welfare priorities, etc.
He opined that maintenance of the Army reputation, is much more tougher than earning it. We need to do the right thing in the right moment and we need to slowly but surely continue for the better image of the organization. Commitment and dedication of our predecessors and those still serving, made the Army to be ahead of all other organizations. In the same vein, breach of discipline by one person causes embarrassment to all of us in the organization. We all must be mindful of what we are doing at formation levels without forgetting or neglecting our roles and tasks. Let not acts of ill-discipline reach my office, the Commander remarked.
All officers should impress on their subordinates and the chain of command should be communicated to the grassroot levels. Discipline flows from our ability to understand what is right and what is wrong. Having been well informed and properly briefed of our parameters, you all must be able to comply with such borders. Hence, you all must be determined to ensure that 100% discipline is practised at different levels at optimum level, he added.
Talking of professional competence, the Commander underlined the importance of having Army training with the intention of modernizing it, to keep pace with fast changing global changes. Everywhere in the world, it is a revolving process. Selection for training in the Army is done purely on merits, and to do that one need to be sound in knowledge. Similarly, the person we select for training should have flair and aptitude for progression and selections for training is purely done after careful scrutiny. We would not deprive any one of your training chances, the Commander pointed out. The best out of the best therefore would be selected to receive such training openings, he quipped.
All armed forces in countries need changing. We too are capable of adapting to these needs and delivery. Therefore, your knowledge should reach optimum level as what you got from your training need to be shared with others as elements of modernization keeps on flowing in.
When instructions are passed down, everyone must ensure their subordinates receive them properly, and no one must be confused with overwhelming traditions and Army orders. Do only what the Army specifies you to do and don’t exceed authorized limits, the Commander warned.
He also wanted the most important welfare measures, like housing reach only those deserving as stakeholders in the Army. One should not feel that they are more important than others in the distribution of those benefits.
Touching the question of participation in sports, the Commander said that the Army is proud and well-respected as the country’s leading organization which produces the most number of men and women to the country’s field of sports to be on par with international standards. The Commander further said that the Army in the past couple of months has taken part in 38 sports disciplines, encouraging national level sportsmen and women.
In conclusion, the Commander reminded that every officer should be well armed with courage, ability, knowledge, dedication and, commitment while living up to the expectations of the organization they serve.
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