18 September 2018 12:05 am
The Anunayake Thera was speaking at the 26th Death Anniversary of the demise of Lt. General Denzil Kobbekaduwa, which was held at the Byrd Park, Kandy.
The function was formally conducted by the former Governor of the Central Provincial Council Tikiri Kobbekaduwa, but since he was not in good health the ceremony was taken over by the Kandy Municipal Council (KMC).
“Just like Mahanayake Siriniwas Kobbekaduwa protected the Sacred Tooth Relic during the British regime, Lt. General Denzil Kobbekaduwa protected the country at a very unusual time,” Anunayake Niyangoda Vijitha Siri Thera said.
Lt. General Kobbekaduwa comes from a lineage of the Mahanayake of Malwatte when the British took over Kandy. He could claim the lineage from that time, coming from a noble family.
Speaking further the Thera said that it was somewhat heartbreaking to see how some react to the ten-year-old peace, after a thirty-year-war and how sometimes the valiant soldiers were spoken about.
“It is also a sad moment in the annals of history of this Sacred Land, that how Lt. General Denzil and others died is not yet revealed,” he said.
“Yet, his memory among the common man and the service he has done would never be forgotten. He did yeoman service to the country and its people and this simple ceremony was undertaken by the Kandy Municipality is a symbol of acknowledgement of that service of the valiant soldier,” Anunayake Venerable Rajakeeya Panditha Niyagoda Vijithasiri said.