Dear Editor,
IT was with great concern that I listened to the statements of former President, Bharrat Jagdeo, on the subject of the welfare of soldiers in the Guyana Defence Force (GDF) sometime in June this year. Mr. Jagdeo was at the time speaking to the media at one of his weekly press conferences.

It is appalling for the former President to accuse President David Granger, a retired Brigadier, of “operational interference”. Lest Mr. Jagdeo forget, it was under his administration that there was political and operational interference in both the GDF and the Guyana Police Force. Mr. Jagdeo ought to remember deliberately restricting the force’s resources and developmental opportunities. Funding was provided for projects of interest to him and his administration. Officers and ranks were seldom given the opportunity to attend training courses and seminars overseas. The stymieing of the officers and ranks of the forces led to their demoralisation.

It was back in August 2007 that Colonels Frank Bispham, Lawrence Paul, Linden Ross and Gordon Benn were interviewed by Mr. Jagdeo and then Head of the Presidential Secretariat, Roger Luncheon, and informed that they were being seconded from the Defence Force to varying parts of the public service.

Colonel Bruce Lovell was interviewed the same day, August 22, 2007 and was promoted and appointed the first Resident Military Attaché to Brazil. Mr. Jagdeo ought not to forget that Gary Best and Mark Phillips colluded with him to have those four colonels removed from the force.

The Stabroek News report of November 4, 2017 captioned “Col Pompey in Cambodia completing UN contract” speaks to the actions taken by Mr. Jagdeo during his tenure as president. The article said that after a little more than a month after Colonel Andrew Pompey was appointed Deputy Chief-of-Staff of the GDF, he was off the job. “Pompey is one of four lieutenant colonels who were elevated to the rank of full colonel to fill the top posts in the army made vacant by President Bharrat Jagdeo’s decision to side-step three officers who were their seniors.”

Colonel Pompey was called away from his appointment in Cambodia to be interviewed by Jagdeo. “Jagdeo in a move that angered some in the army, promoted Commander Gary Best to Commodore, and Pompey, Bruce Lovell and Mark Phillips to substantive colonels. Pompey replaced Paul as the Deputy Chief-of-Staff; Bruce Lovell moved to Colonel, General Staff and Mark Phillips now heads the force’s administration. The promotion of the officers meant that Paul was overlooked to replace Collins, while Colonels Linden Ross, Frank Bishpam and Gordon Benn were superseded.

The four men were offered secondments to the public service but so far only Ross has taken up the offer at the Carifesta Secretariat. At present Paul, Bishpam and Benn are on leave, and according to reports the men are unlikely to take up the offers,” the Stabroek News reported.

According to that very news article, the former President defended his decision and said he acted in accordance with the Defence Act which gave him the power to appoint the Chief-of-Staff. For the former President to accuse President Granger, a former brigadier, a man of integrity and principle who understands the needs of the GDF, of political interference is ludicrous and hypocritical when it was Mr. Jagdeo who damaged and demoralised the force during his reign as President.

Mr. Jagdeo and his bandwagonists are quick to speak of the one-month bonus but I agree wholeheartedly with Finance Minister, Winston Jordan, who said the People’s Progressive Party (PPP) paid those bonus salaries to the members of the Disciplined Services to bribe them into taking action against those who opposed that regime. The ranks and officers of the GDF have received increases in their salaries that total way more than a one-month bonus could. The very membership of the force has benefitted from better facilities, equipment, local and overseas training programmes. Can a one-month bonus salary compensate for all of these benefits?

The Commander-in-Chief of the armed forces since taking office in 2015 has not acted outside of his powers outlined in the Defence Act, Chapter 15:01 of the Laws of Guyana. He has sought to strengthen the Defence Force through continuous training exercises. The President along with the Defence Board has been working tirelessly to improve the force’s efficiency.

It is clear for all to see that the force’s operations and training were neglected by the PPP. Under President Granger’s leadership, the National Cadet Corps and the Guyana People’s Militia, and the reserve arm of the force, have been re-established. That aside, the force has received a large quantity of equipment from the Chinese, they received aircraft and other items to enhance its operational capacity.

Regards,
Gordon Daniels
(Retired Army Officer)