IN the face of ongoing territorial claims by both Venezuela and Suriname, President David Granger on Thursday told officers of the Guyana Defence Force that, in order for this country to survive in such a race, there must be a plan for ‘total national defence.’

This implies that all the elements and instruments of national power need constantly to be employed in order to protect the country’s territory. This policy, the President said, will, on implementation, “give our regular and reserve forces the resources they need to perform their mission over the next five years.” He said, too, that 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. Granger unveiled the policy during an address to GDF officers in the presence of Prime Minister Moses Nagamootoo and other top officials of the military. The Commander-in-Chief said the Constitution of the Co-operative Republic of Guyana, at Article 197 A (1), stipulates: “The State’s defence and security policy shall be to defend national independence, preserve the country’s sovereignty and integrity, and guarantee the normal functioning of institutions and the security of citizens against any armed aggression.”

Visible warfare

According to the Guyanese head of state, the age of very visible warfare in the form of harassment on our borders or the intrusion of gunboats into our waters is not yet over. He noted that the Border and National Security Committee, established at the start of the ‘Troubles’ in 2001, determined that: “The principal purpose of the Guyana Defence Force is to provide the potential for the application of force to ensure the security of the nation, the freedom of its people, and the promotion of the national interest.

Defence policy must determine the structure and capabilities of the Defence Force and guide the contribution it makes to the country’s defence and security goals, in accordance with foreign and economic policies.”

The President stated further that: “Guyana’s National Defence Strategy should focus on deterrence based on the potential of military force to support diplomatic efforts designed to avoid recourse to armed conflict. It must also attempt to dissuade a potential adversary from resorting to a particular course of action by convincing him that the costs of pursuing it [that course of action] will outweigh the potential gains.” President Granger said a Guyana, in light of the injunction of the national constitution, the counsel of the Committee and the aggressive persistence of these territorial claims, now needs to carefully define its policy for total national defence.

“Guyana needs a well-commanded, well-trained, well-equipped defence force with the core capabilities to keep our citizens safe and secure.”

He said the GDF, in order to fulfil its mission, must be multi-role, flexible, and fully integrated with sufficient support weapons. “It must be based on five pillars: -PERSONNEL: 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.

The ‘reserve force’ must be re-constituted and maintained at a minimum of 50 per cent of the strength of the ‘regular force.’ -READINESS: the Force must be prepared to deploy to any part of Guyana at short notice in response to Government direction. Readiness refers also to the resources needed to conduct training and to prepare units for operations.

-INFRASTRUCTURE: the Force maintains several large bases throughout the country. The condition of airstrips, barracks, hangars, wharves and other infrastructure must be maintained in a serviceable condition to conduct operations.

MORALE: the Force must maintain its esprit de corps in order to enable troops to support its mission, and to function as a unit in order to achieve its objectives.

-EQUIPMENT: The Force must have the capacity to maintain adequate combat-ready units with the correct mix of personnel and equipment. Aircraft, road vehicles and maritime vessels, inevitably will be degraded over time, but must be repaired or replaced if efficiency is to be ensured.”

Re-organisation

Additionally, the President said, the GDF must change in order to strengthen these five pillars. He noted that changes must start at the top, at the level of the general staff, in order to improve specialisation and the quality of service. To this end, he announced the restoration of the position of Adjutant General. This, he said, will 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.

Besides, he announced that the position of Quartermaster General has been restored. “This is meant to afford a superior officer the resources to 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 President told the gathering.

He said, too, that 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. This will be achieved through the improvement of training methods and schools, and the conduct of training exercises. Changes necessary

Granger told the soldiers that other changes are necessary to enable the GDF to fulfil its constitutional mandate and to perform its functions. These changes, he said, must be designed to develop the Force’s capability to provide continuous surveillance over Guyana’s air, territorial, and maritime borders and approaches; to provide search-and-rescue services to persons in distress; and to provide assistance to the civil authority in response to any threat or disaster. According to him, greater emphasis will now be placed on the technical corps.

He noted that the Air Corps should be upgraded to provide continuous surveillance over Guyana’s air, territorial and maritime borders and approaches, and support search-and-rescue services to persons in distress.

The Coast Guard, too, he said, should be upgraded to permit it to provide continuous surveillance over Guyana’s maritime borders and approaches, and provide search-and-rescue services to persons in distress. Granger said maritime security is a serious matter.

With respect to the Engineer Corps, he said this is essential to the restoration of 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. Greater emphasis will also be placed on the three auxiliaries.”

The President reiterated that the Reserve Force, then called the Guyana People’s Militia, used to be deployed throughout the country, where it could render assistance to the regional administrations in times of floods, threats to public order, and other emergencies.

He said it is his government’s intention to re-establish the militia as a credible reserve in all ten regions. He also spoke about the National Cadet Corps which is to 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.

And the Civil Defence Corps is to be established to support the work of the Civil Defence Commission in responding to and managing disasters.