Udaya Gammanpila has launched a scathing attack on the National People’s Power (NPP), claiming that the ruling party thrives not on the legacy of Rohana Wijeweera but on Joseph Goebbels’ infamous propaganda doctrine of turning lies into truth.
I say without hesitation that the National People’s Power (NPP) is not standing today on the shoulders of Rohana Wijeweera, but on the cunning doctrine of Joseph Goebbels, Adolf Hitler’s propaganda minister, who taught the world that a lie told a hundred times becomes the truth.
The NPP-led government is preparing to mark Heroes’ Day by wearing red and honoring Wijeweera. But I must tell the people this is nothing more than political theatre. Wijeweera built his movement on anti-imperialist, anti-capitalist and anti-IMF principles. The NPP never followed that path. Instead, they chose to bow to foreign masters becoming tame before India and obedient followers of American envoys like Julie Chang. Let us be clear: Wijeweera did nothing to bring the NPP to power. What brought them here was pure Goebbelsism.
For years, they repeated outrageous lies until the people believed them. They said billions of dollars were hidden in Uganda, people believed. They said a dog wore a gold necklace worth 90 pounds, people believed. They promised to abolish all taxes and sell fuel at the price it landed in the port — and people believed that too. These lies, repeated endlessly, were the very foundation of their victory.
Even now, the government runs on the same culture of deceit. The President himself has admitted that when he wants to lie, he does so in Parliament. The Prime Minister issues circulars and then denies them in the same House. The Speaker misleads Parliament to avoid a no-confidence motion. Ministers compete in lies as if they were playing a New Year festival game. Without Goebbels’ theory, this government simply cannot exist.
That is why I say: instead of celebrating Rohana Wijeweera, they should celebrate Goebbels. His birthday falls on October 29. I am giving the President nine days’ notice so he can plan a grand Goebbels Day. If they want to show true respect to the man who gave them power, they can even travel to Germany and hold the celebration there. Yet, let them remember Germany, even 80 years after Goebbels’ death, does not allow the Nazis to be honored, while here we allow every deception to pass in the name of politics.
The truth is simple. The NPP is not the heir of Wijeweera’s struggle. It is the child of Goebbels’ propaganda. And as long as it survives on lies, it will continue to betray both the people and the legacy it pretends to uphold.
