The President and Commander-In-Chief of The Gambia Armed Forces Alhaji Dr. Yahya Jammeh Friday presided over the passing out ceremony of 876 recruits of The Gambia Armed Forces.

The colourful ceremony at the July 22 Square in Banjul was graced by the Vice President and Chairperson of the National Security Council Dr Aja Isatou Njie-Saidy, the Speaker of the National Assembly, the Chief Justice, Secretaries of State, diplomats, relatives and friends of the armed forces. The event was punctuated with a presentation of awards, the decoration of outstanding recruits and military displays. The eleven best recruits were promoted to the rank of Lance Corporal.

Speaking on the occasion, Dr Jammeh extended a warm welcome to the parents, relatives and friends of the recruits, noting that without their encouragement the individual decisions taken by the soldiers to serve their country would not have materialised. He described national service in whatever form as a noble undertaking and congratulated the soldiers and wished them success in their military career. The Gambian leader urged the soldiers to individually and collectively uphold their allegiance to the country, and perform their roles and responsibilities in society without reservation. He encouraged them to take up specialities in all aspects of military discipline.

Dr Jammeh underscored the importance of peace and stability for any meaningful development to take place. He therefore announced that before the end of the year, GAF will deploy soldiers to Essau, Laminkoto and Mansakonko emphasizing that there would be zero tolerance for armed robbers, drug dealers and paedophiles in the country.

The Chief of Defence Staff Major General Lang Tombong Tamba commended President Jammeh for his visionary leadership as well as his guidance and support to the Gambia Armed Forces.

As a goodwill gesture, Dr Jammeh donated the graduands eleven bulls, 100 bags of rice, 100 bags of sugar, 100 drums of oil, 50 bags of onion and D50,000 for their passing out party. He also presented 2 houses equipped with state-of-the-art x-ray equipment to the Gambia Armed Forces to help them provide needed services across the country.