CADETS of the Guyana Defence Force (GDF) Standard Officers Course Number 44, yesterday demonstrated their skills in shooting, jungle survival, ravine crossing and tactical operations before Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces, Donald Ramotar. The venue was Base Camp Stephenson, Timehri, where 15 cadets drawn from the GDF and the Guyana Prison Service (GPS), and 11 from the wider Guyanese community, demonstrated military drills consistent with their training.
Cadets’ Day is a day open to the public.
Camp Stephenson, officially named the Colonel Ulric Pilgrim Officer Cadet School, was established to train junior soldiers for the GDF and the Joint Services. The training and exposure help the men and women to become leaders who make invaluable contributions to the security of the nation.
President Ramotar, accompanied by Prime Minister Samuel Hinds, Chief of Staff of the GDF Commodore Gary Best, other senior officers of the Force, Police Commissioner (ag) Leroy Brummell, and other officers, witnessed the ensigns in action, beginning with the physical training exercise.
Carrying 15-lb logs on their shoulders, a group of cadets demonstrated some of the exercises they have been conducting to develop physical strength. These include shoulder press, squats and sit-ups.
Climaxing the showcase was the three-mile run and standard obstacle course. In this routine, a squad of cadets, while on patrol, scale a fire wall, climb the balance bar, the monkey ladder and a wall.
The falling plate shoot demonstrates the accuracy with which the cadets can shoot their target some distance away, while the house clearing exercise demonstrates how a military operation is executed to apprehend criminals.
Other aspects of the activity included, a weapons display, jungle survival and ravine crossing.