After months of delay, 209 members of the Guyana Fire Service (GFS) were promoted on Friday.
In a press release issued yesterday, the GFS said those promoted included 39 Subordinate officers, 60 Section Leaders and 110 Leading firefighters.
The promotions came close to a month after Minister of Home Affairs, Robeson Benn granted approval for them.
The promoted officers had their new rank insignias pinned during a simple ceremony held at the Central Fire Station, Georgetown.
According to the release, Fire Chief (ag) Gregory Wickham urged the promoted officers to be “strong, great” leaders and to improve themselves to suit their new ranks.
He also reminded them to ensure that discipline is maintained at all time. “He (Wickham) encouraged them to be upstanding individuals and to give of their best in order to bridge the gap between senior command and the ranks under their command, with the goal of enhancing the image and quality of the Guyana Fire Service,” the release stated.
It added that Wickham also encouraged the ranks to aim to lead under the two main pillars of education and discipline.
A recent collaboration with the Government Technical Institute, Wickham also said, will allow the officers to advance their academic qualification and he urged them to take advantage of the opportunity.
In August last year, controversy had erupted within the GFS when a number of officers were removed from the list for promotion due to “disciplinary infractions” on their records which they were punished for years earlier.
About half of the 30 men and women removed from the list had instructed their attorney, Eusi Anderson to write the then acting Fire Chief Kalamudeen Edoo directing that he issue to the Benn, the list of all officers who have passed the necessary examinations and were eligible for promotions or face a “constitutional action for discrimination”
While in office, Edoo never confirmed whether he had received any such letter from the attorney.
Edoo subsequently found himself at the centre of an investigation into a number of financial malpractices at the GFS Headquarters and proceeded on pre-retirement leave.
