Colonel George Lewis was yesterday promoted to the rank of Brigadier before being sworn in as the new Chief of Staff of the Guyana Defence Force (GDF) by President David Granger.
Brigadier Lewis, during the simple ceremony held at Base Camp Ayanganna, said that it has been one of his lifelong dreams to head the army.
Asked about his immediate goals, he pointed out that the mandate is to provide border defence, but there are some challenges in this regard. He said work is ongoing to rectify these challenges which would include some amount of recapitalization and the acquisition of new equipment.
When asked about his proposals for the recapitalization of the GDF, Brigadier Lewis declined to answer saying that discussions are still ongoing and once the Defence Board has made final decisions the media will be briefed.
President Granger, after announcing Lewis’s promotion and appointment, said the Defence Board “deliberated…discussed…decided” that upon the retirement of Brigadier Mark Phillips, Lewis was the “fittest person” to be pointed to the position of Chief of Staff.
He said the Board is confident that Lewis is most senior and best qualified office to perform this function.
Granger informed that Lewis enlisted in the GDF as an officer cadet on September 1, 1981 and was commissioned after completing the Standard Officers’ Course No 11 in August 1982.
Outgoing Chief of Staff Brigadier Mark Phillips came in for high praise from the President who said the Defence Board was satisfied with his conduct of Operations Green-heart and Homeguard, his administrative preparedness and the operational readiness of the GDF during his time at the helm.
Phillips said that after the rank of major or lieutenant colonel he became more interested in military administration and that was his focus thereafter.
He said among his interests were financial planning, human resources and operational planning.
“On becoming Chief of Staff I considered myself well rounded and well prepared for the appointment… Perhaps this is the reason why during my three years as Chief of Staff it was less stressful for me and more an opportunity to perform in the interest of the Guyanese people and in the interest of the soldiers that I commanded,” he said.
Asked what his legacy is, he expressed the view that he is leaving a team of officers who are well trained and well experienced.
“We have started a process which we refer to as Operation Readiness where we improve our ability to conduct operations in any part of Guyana utilizing whatever resources we have and more importantly improving the quality of life on all military bases and locations throughout Guyana,” he said.
