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Emulate two greats of your school: CP Governor tells Trinitians
View(s):Pays tribute to the late Ministers Lakshman Kadirgamar and Gamini Dissanayake at school Prize Giving
The annual Prize Giving of Trinity College, Kandy was held on Friday with Central Province Governor Maithri Gunaratne as Chief Guest. Addressing the gathering, the Governor paid tribute to two past pupils of Trinity College; late Ministers Lakshman Kadirgamar and Gamini Dissanayake, who had been instrumental in shaping his life and career.
Gayan Dissanaike: Recipient of the Lakshman Kadirgamar Gold Medal for Oratory
He recalled serving as a junior lawyer under Mr. Kadirgamar for several years prior to entering politics. At the time Mr Kadirgamar became the country’s Foreign Minister, Sri Lanka’s international reputation was “down in the dumps,” but he was able to turn the tide around single-handedly, Mr Gunaratne stated. “If not for his diplomacy and advocacy, we would never have been able to win the international community,” he remarked.
The Governor noted that Trinity College could well be proud to have produced such a man, who was regarded as part of the “elite” not because of wealth or power, but because he was “the best.”
He called on more Trinitians to join the Government Service and other spheres of public work in order to take the country forward.
Reminiscing about the late Mr. Gamani Dissanayake, Mr Gunaratne recalled that it was Mr Dissanayake, who was then Opposition Leader, who invited him to join politics in 1994. “Mr Gamini Dissanayake had a vision for this country, and I honestly believe that he would have been the Lee Kuan Yew everyone dreams of in Sri Lanka.”
Though both men contributed immensely to the country, the careers of both these great Trinitians were cut short when they were assassinated by the LTTE, he noted, opining that had they been alive, they would have been able to take the country from a third world country into a first world one.
He called on the students of Trinity to emulate these two illustrious products of their school and take up their mantle, in order to take their school and the country from strength to strength.
Baghya Ranasinghe receiving the Ryde Gold Medal for Most Outstanding Student, from Governor Gunaratne