IN ADDITION to the political leadership given by President Mahinda Rajapaksa it was the brave decision to double the manpower of the Security Forces that became the main factor in wining the war against the LTTE, Defence Secretary Gotabhaya Rajapaksa said.
The Defence Secretary addressing the first felicitation ceremony of Civil Security Department (CSD) officials in Anuradhapura said the timely decision of the President led to victory in the war since like in any other endeavour, a skilful, knowledgeable workforce is a must to achieve success.
The ceremony was aimed at recognizing the service of officials of CSD. At the ceremony some CSD officials received promotions by the Defence Secretary while four others were awarded certificates for their bravery and tactical skills during the war against the LTTE.
On the advice of the President, steps were taken to increase the manpower of the Three Forces, Police and CSD by 250,000. Accordingly 200,000 were recruited to the Armed Services while 35,000 to the Police and 20,000 to the CSD. The recruits underwent a complete training while encouraging them to face any challenge, the Defence Secretary said.
After the LTTE’s brutal attack on civilians at Kebitigollewa, the President advised a complete overhaul of the security mechanism for vulnerable villages. On President Mahinda Rajapaksa’s directives the manpower of the CSD was increased to 41,500 from 19,000, he said.
”We continuously recruited 5,000 per month for three years to the Security Forces,” the Defence Secretary added.
The Government had implemented a strategy to win the war learning from past failures. CSD officials were issued T56 weapons instead of shot guns and they were put through professional training. All the CSD officers were given standard uniforms which gave them honour and dignity. As a result, of around 4,500 CSD officers took part in the final battle against the LTTE, he said.
Addressing the gathering Chief Minister of the North Central Province Berty Premalal Dissanayake said, normality was disturbed in most parts of the North Central Province due to the brutal activities of the LTTE. However, the President has led the country to defeating the LTTE allowing everyone to live peacefully without fear of death. Therefore the people will definitely pay their gratitude to President Rajapaksa at the forthcoming Presidential Election, the Chief Minister said.
Under the Defence Secretary’s guidance, the CSD was reorganized and converted into a skilful unit which can overcome any crisis. The salaries of CSD officers were increased by 40 percent. Moves are underway to offer them a pension scheme, General Civil Security Department Director Rear Admiral Sarath P. Weerasekara said. (Courtesy: Daily News)
