THE CEREMONY marking the change of command in the Jamaica Defence Force from Major-General John Simmonds to Major-General Hardley Lewin was impressive for the precision and discipline that it displayed.
Very few of the large crowd, which viewed the parade under sunny skies at the Polo Field at Up Park Camp on Saturday afternoon, could have remained unmoved by the pageantry.
Several things contributed to making the ceremony memorable. There was the poignancy of the farewell of the outgoing Chief-of-Staff. Inspecting the troops with his successor but very much in charge, reviewing the parade, making his final address, receiving three cheers, and then making one slow last drive past the assembled troops before heading off into retirement. The new chief was left in command.
The military marches and other music from the Jamaica Military Band under the baton of Major R.A.Wade provided a pleasing background for the ceremony.
All of this was carried out with a precision, discipline and aplomb that suggested weeks of painstaking rehearsal. Which prompts the thought that compulsory military service or some form of exposure to the discipline of the military for our young people could not but produce a more ordered society than there is at the present.
The retiring Chief-of-Staff left some sobering words with pointed reference to what the public expects, cautioning that good deeds by a majority could be erased by the inappropriate actions of a few. It was important, he said, to resist any social trend that creates a corrosive divide between the values of today's society and successful military culture.
Those parting words reflect recognition of what the Jamaican army has become an integral part of the nation's security shield in symbiotic relationship with the Police Force.
In pledging his own vision of the future the new Chief-of-Staff said he hopes to transform the JDF into a high-quality professional defence force, characterised by integrity, honour, courage and discipline as well as commitment to the well-being of the citizenry and usefulness to the nation. We wish him well.
