-Dr Luncheon
The recently established Security Sector Secretariat, headed by Major General(ret’d) Michael Atherly, has some twelve months to formulate and implement a national security strategy policy, according to Head of the Presidential Secretariat, Dr Roger Luncheon.
Dr Luncheon told reporters yesterday that on Monday cabinet was advised of the appointment of Atherly as coordinator of the secretariat by President Bharrat Jagdeo. Up to the day Atherly’s appointment was made public he was head of the Civil Defence Commission.
A knowledgeable source on security issues described Atherly’s appointment as a good move since he is a very experienced military officer. But while he may bring a “tremendous” amount of knowledge to his new job he also has to bring some amount of discretion, especially when dealing with the Guyana Police Force, the Guyana Defence Force, the Ministry of Home Affairs and the Defence Board.
The source noted that both the police and the army have prescribed rules under the law on how they operate.
According to Dr Luncheon the secretariat was specifically established to formulate and implement the new security policy.
“The game plan surrounding the formulation has already been adopted and the expectation is that the time limit for those stages to be implemented does not exceed twelve months,” Dr Luncheon said.
He said that the secretariat is “staffed conventionally” and that it will be under the purview of the Defence Board while being housed at the Office of the President.
The source cautioned that there is nothing in the Defence Act that required such a position, which was described as an unscheduled appointment and one that is not catered for under the constitution but rather it was created. But it was noted that it is not “unprecedented” as former President Desmond Hoyte had appointed Brigadier (ret’d) David Granger as the National Security Advisor in 1990 and his office was located at OP. Granger held that appointment until he retired and no one replaced him. It was noted that it is logical for a position such as Atherly’s to be located at OP but there must be clearly defined terms of reference when he is dealing with the listed organisations.
“I feel it is a good appointment because there are several security initiatives that have been undertaken by the administration over the last eight years,” the source said, citing the national drug strategy master plan and the British-funded security reform programme.
“It is a legitimate and necessary position but they need to be careful in the definition of the terms of reference,” the source said.
Meanwhile, Dr Luncheon yesterday also said that formulation and implementation of the national security strategy and policy would take place concurrently with specific aspects of implementation that are either ongoing currently or tabled for implementation soon.
Last week Atherly was replaced at the CDC by retired Colonel Chabilall Ramsarup, who had previously headed the body before becoming the Commissioner of Customs and Trade Administration at the Guyana Revenue Authority (GRA), a position he held up to his return to the CDC.
