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The Honourable Minister of Defence Sheikh Omar Faye, on Wednesday 29 April 2020 extolled the Gambia Armed Forces for answering to the clarion call of the Gambian people. The Minister expressed his deepest appreciation to the Gambia Armed Forces whilst on a visit to some of the troops who are on a humanitarian operation at McCarthy Square in Banjul to assist in the delivery of food aid to the public. The troops are deployed at the request of civil authority to help in the distribution of food aid and enforcing the Emergency Regulations as a result of Covid-19. Equally, the troops are providing security to the convoys carrying relief materials and at the various Mass Distribution Centers identified by the National Disaster Management Agency.
The Gambia Armed Forces since on 27 April 2020 through the Ministry of Defence has been tasked to provide some of her personnel to embark on a humanitarian operation at the McCarthy Square in Banjul to aid civil authority in the distribution of necessary food items to the Gambian people. This gesture comes on the heels of efforts by the government to procure several basic food items to support over eighty percent of Gambian households as a result of the effect of the Corona virus pandemic. It may be instructive to state that Section 187 (2) of The 1997 Constitution (as amended) states that one of the functions of The Gambia Armed Forces was “to aid the civil authorities, at their request, in emergencies and in case of natural disasters”. There is no emergency bigger than the COVID 19 pandemic in the world at the moment.
In addition, following the declaration of a State of Public Emergency by His Excellency President Adama Barrow, The Gambia Armed Forces launched OPERATION CRACK NUT on 27 March 2020 with the aim of supporting civil authority in order to eradicate the spread of the Corona virus in The Gambia. It is also aimed at ensuring that the people of The Gambia are safe and free from COVID 19. Consequently, GAF has dedicated a considerable amount of her personnel and resources to this operation including offering humanitarian assistance through the Gambia National Army, Navy and Republican National Guard. It is as a result of this the Honourable Minister of Defence visited the troops to appreciate their efforts. The Minister was accompanied by the Permanent Secretary Ministry of Defence Madam Ndey Njie, the Principal Staff Officer/Military Assistant to the Ministry Lieutenant Colonel Omar B. Bojang and The Gambia Armed Forces Liaison Officer Lieutenant Commander Adama Trawalleh.
Source: Defence Ministry