President, Defence Secretary stood by us: Outgoing Army Chief

Wednesday, 10 July 2013 00:56 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

President Mahinda Rajapaksa and Defence Secretary Gotabaya Rajapaksa stood by the military and defended its image throughout the war, fearing nobody, outgoing Army Commander General Jagath Jayasuriya said yesterday.

Addressing soldiers at a farewell speech at the Security Force Headquarters-East at Welikanda, before he takes office as Chief of Defence Staff in August, General Jayasuriya said that the Army had to be grateful for the courage and stimulus provided by the Commander in Chief and the high ranking defence official. “In the recent past, overseas-based interested elements have been found levelling a string of unfounded and malicious allegations against the country and the Army, most of them targeting the President and the Secretary Defence. They were talking of human right violations, said to have been committed by us during humanitarian operations. Fortunately, both President and Secretary Defence firmly stood by us, defeated all conspiracies and defended the good image of the Army right throughout, fearing nobody,” he said. General Jayasuriya said that in his four-year tenure he had put all steps in place to prevent the resurgence of terrorism in the country. “The Sri Lanka Army has by now gained professional standards in all spheres and all of us can be proud of it. Those who cast negative remarks against us are now realising our potential and unlimited capabilities, oriented towards the greater benefit of our society. All of you within a matter of four years transformed the Army to be a peace-loving one, having shown your battlefield skills for many years,” the outgoing Commander said. (DB)