Keheliya Rambukwella said that those who lead teachers are worthless. It is clear that he meant Joseph Stalin. Is Joseph Stalin worthless? When you look at the etymology of the word worthless, you can see that it means the one whose ears are black. In the past it was believed that those with such ears were unfortunate. Some people think that the word worthless does not mean time consuming.
Is Joseph Stalin worthless?
Joseph Stalin was the son of Comrade Benedict, a Port Workers leader in Colombo, Modara and a leader of the Ceylon Communist Party or Chinese faction. Educated at Dilasal Vidyalaya, Modara, he received his primary teacher training from the Hapitigama College of Education and served for the first time at the Tantirimale Wannihelambewa School in the Anuradhapura District. It was a time of war and even transportation to Tantirimale was difficult. After many years he transferred not to Colombo but to a difficult school in the Teldeniya area in the Kandy District. From there I came to Colombo and while teaching at a school where a large number of street children were studying in the Bloemendal area, I went to that school to write an article for a newspaper. When Joe was in Wannihelambewa, I worked at Pusiyankulam Maha Vidyalaya in Alayapattu. We were staying under one roof. Joe is a well-educated, dedicated, extracurricular teacher in schools. Later he was released full time on the request of the Ceylon Teachers Union.
As a trade union leader, Joseph was a staunch supporter of the policies of past teachers’ union leaders. That is, teachers’ union leaders do not get promotions to other grades, such as principal. Joseph strongly objected to the teachers ‘union leaders who were wronged by the 1980 strike coming forward as teachers’ unions in 2005 and seeking relief from political retaliation for the position of director of education. In addition, he contested for the leadership of the Ceylon Teachers Union outside the nomination of the Central Committee of the Ceylon Teachers Union. He lost that election. Berty Ranaweera’s brother won and became the chairman. He later retired as Director of Education.
Later, however, Joseph changed this drastic policy. But, he always worked as a teacher and never tried for any promotion. For some time now he has been working seven days a week in the Teachers ‘Union office or in the field for teachers’ unions and other public works. He is someone who has not used that freedom to personal benefits. Joshep has almost no other personal life apart from the Teachers Union anyway. He is unmarried. His familiy, who are urbanites, are ordinary people. They are ordinary people who work and live independently. Joe has never tried to achieve the status quo that is generally accepted as development by privately buying land, houses, and vehicles. As far as I know he had no other vehicle other than the bicycle given to him by someone while he was in Anuradhapura. He is a man who lives a life of complete proletarian austerity living only on wages. It was his choice.
Not only Keheliya Rambukwella, but many in this society view the ascetic life of Joseph Stalin as a failure. But, Joe is a professional who does not depend on anyone and lives by a formal job. Let me say something that most people do not know. Joseph is a talented business manager. Joe, who left the Teachers’ Union for a short time around 2005, also volunteered to manage a friend’s garden abroad.
I am not saying that he is a perfect person as a trade union leader. I see the Ceylon Teachers’ Union as a union with more conservative views on leftist heritage than a modern trade union. However, the Ceylon Teachers’ Union is at the forefront of trade unions in Sri Lanka that continue to hold district conventions and hold national conventions annually without resorting to decentralized democratic practices.
Joseph Stalin is not a descendant of the New Leftist current that began with the JVP in the 1960s. Joseph Stalin, who was adamant on Tamil rights on the national question, was never a victim of Sinhala or Tamil nationalism.
The professional revolutionary ascetic life is given high priority in the New Leftist movement started by the JVP. It is my belief that there is no tradition of paying salaries to trade revolutionaries or full-timers in the New Left parties. After the banning of the JVP in 1983, I worked in secret politics as a full time member of the JVP for about five years. That illegal ascetic life is extremely difficult. The path I have chosen since the 1990s has been to get a job and get involved in politics. With family life, I chose a comfortable life without glitches. For that I transferred from the teaching profession to other professions. Entrepreneurship was also touched. That is my choice. There are a large number of full time leaders in political parties such as the Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna and the Frontline Socialist Party who have chosen a professional revolutionary life. It is their choice. If they are satisfied with it, compare their lives with their own
No one has the right to brag about themselves.
Let us now look at Keheliya Rambukwella’s selection. He is a qualified hotel professional. Producing the well-earned Sakvithi Suwaya film starring Gamini Fonseka is considered a milestone in his business career. He started politics from the Democratic United National Front led by Lalith Athulathmudali and later joined the United National Party and was elected to Parliament from the Kandy District in 2000. He contested the 2001 and 2004 general elections from the United National Party and was elected to Parliament. He later joined Mahinda Rajapaksa. It was also reported that he tried to rejoin the UNP after the 2015 defeat. His recent power and wealth are associated with politics and related businesses.
In 2012, during a private trip to Melbourne, Australia, Keheliya Rambukwella fell from the third floor of the hotel where he was staying and injured his leg. Although he is a wealthy man, he gets treatment for this with public money. He gets compensation from the hotel and benefits from his personal insurance. Despite this, he claimed to be seeking treatment and in 2013 received Rs. 20 million will also be obtained. He sells his broken bones to several companies. Is he a successful businessman? Is life worth living even in this way? (Keheliya Rambukwella who sold one leg for three places)
Such is the case with Keheliya Rambukwella, the successful man who insulted the leader of the teachers’ union, Joseph Stalin, as a miserable and unsuccessful man. The real miserable ones are those who, like society, inherit misfortune and live sinful, lustful, lustful, unsatisfying lives. There is no one who does not know about such politicians. But, the problem is not that. Who do we as a society follow? At one end there are deceitful but prosperous people like Keheliya Rambukwella. At the other end of the spectrum there are people like Comrade Joseph Stalin who hear the words ‘miserable’ from people like Rambukwella because of their ascetic life. It is difficult. The choice is personal. There is good and bad. But you can also try to live a comfortable life by earning a fair amount of money without being a fraud like Keheliya Rambukwella. More importantly, choose the difference between consumption and consumerism and not succumb to consumerism.