GDF to increase number of soldiers; People's Militia to be re-established- Granger
- Thursday, 15 October 2015 21:22
- Written by Denis Scott Chabrol
- Comments::0 Comments
FLASH BACK: President David Granger inspecting a GDF Guard of Honour at his inauguration.
President David Granger has announced
plans to increase the number of regular soldiers,
reintroduce the Guyana People’s Militia
and beef up the air and marine wings of the Guyana Defence Force
as part of a five-year "total defence" strategy.
Addressing GDF Officers
at the army’s headquarters at Camp Ayanganna,
he said the GDF’s five pillars
must include recruiting more soldiers and reserves.
“The Force must be brought up to
the authorised establishment strength
to meet current and unforeseen challenges.
A study will be done to examine
how the ‘regular force’ could be augmented,”
said the Retired Brigadier and current Commander-in-Chief.
The President also announced that
the Guyana People’s Militia (GPM) would be re-established
in all 10 administrative regions
to render assistance in times of floods,
threats to public order and other emergencies.
“The ‘reserve force’ must be re-constituted and
maintained at a minimum of 50 per cent of the strength
of the ‘regular force,’ he said.
The Reserve was established in 1976 and
downsized by the previous
People’s Progressive Party Civic (PPPC)-led administration in 1997
into the 2nd Infantry Battalion.
The GDF’s strength is estimated at about 2,000 persons.
He explained that beefing up
the regular and reserve components of the GDF
was part of a “Total Defence” strategy.
“This policy – Total National Defence –
emphasises the need for all the elements
and instruments of national power
to be combined to protect our territory.
This policy will, on implementation,
give our regular and reserve forces the resources
they need to perform their mission over the next five years.
The long-term objective is to ensure that
Guyanese will be able to depend on defence forces,
which will ensure the safety of the citizens
and the security of the country,” he said.
Granger said the Civil Defence Corps
is to be established to support the work
of the Civil Defence Commission in responding to
and managing disasters.
The President expects the GDF
to continue being a key player in defence diplomacy
by building on its participation
in several United States-sponsored Exercise Tradewinds
and contributions to disaster relief
in several Caribbean countries
like Antigua and Barbuda, Montserrat and Grenada
that had been hit by hurricanes over the decades.
“Guyana’s defence policy, as proposed
in the BNSC Report,
should be in accord with the state’s foreign policy
and diplomatic posture.
Defence diplomacy contributes to building confidence
between armed forces and, in extreme cases,
to preventing conflict,
managing crises and
resolving disputes between states,” he said.
Eyeing a well-commanded,
well-trained and well-equipped force
that is multi-role, flexible and fully-integrated
with sufficient support weapons,
the President said the Air Corps and Coast Guard should be upgraded to provide continuous surveillance of
Guyana’s air, territorial and maritime borders and approaches
and support search-and-rescue services
to persons in distress.
Granger wants the Engineer Corps
to help restore defence and public infrastructure.
“This Corps once had the capability
to contribute to the celebrated Mahdia-Annai
and Itaballi-Sand Landing road projects.
The non-completion of these projects
is partially responsible for
the underdevelopment of the hinterland,” he said.
The President’s restated that the National Cadet Corps
would be re-established
to allow boys and girls between the ages of 12 and 18 years
in secondary schools to pursue part-time training
to prepare them for adult life.
The GDF has already announced
that the pilot schools identified for the Cadet Programme
include the New Amsterdam Multilateral
and the Stewartville Secondary.
Granger noted that the position of Adjutant General
has been restored to allow a dedicated superior officer
to pay undivided attention to discipline,
the selection and recruitment of personnel,
promotions, career planning
and troops’ morale and well-being.
Now that the position of
Quartermaster General has been restored,
the President hopes that such a superior officer
will ensure that finance is provided
to improve infrastructure
and ensure that equipment is acquired,
repaired or replaced,
that troops’ living conditions,
meals and uniforms are adequate and
that munitions and weapons are acquired
and supplied in a timely manner.
The position of Inspector General is meant
to ensure that the appropriate superior officer
is responsible for maintaining the Force
in a state of operational readiness and
interoperability with fraternal Caribbean defence forces, he said.
“This will be achieved through the improvement of training methods and schools and the conduct of training exercises,” he said.
