The Royal Bahamas Defence Force welcomed in its largest male and female entry in the Royal Bahamas Defence Force of one hundred and twenty-six (126) recruits at the Coral Harbour Base on Friday, July 5, 2024.
The entry which comprised of 91 males and 35 females were the most recent group of brave individuals to survive twenty (20) weeks of arduous basic military training.
Nearly 35% of the New Entry, forty-four (44) to be exact, also represented many of the Family Islands, such as Abaco, Eleuthera, Grand Bahama, Andros, Cat Island, Mayaguana and San Salvador. The Honourable Wayne Munroe, K.C. who was in attendance, carried out an inspection of the parade along with the Commander Defence Force, Commodore Dr. Raymond King.
Bringing the keynote address to the newest squad of Defence Force Marines, Prime Minister Phillip Davis congratulated them and expressed his gratitude to them on behalf of the government and the people of The Bahamas.
“You will now follow in the footsteps of the brave men and women before you who answer the call of duty to make our country a safer place…New Entry 61 and Woman Entry 30, I know that these have been challenging weeks for you, weeks that have tested your courage, your resilience, and your endurance. In the same way, that Iron sharpens Iron, your rigorous gaining has prepared you and sharpen you for the job ahead of you. You entered gaining as civilians and you have now emerged as marines.”
With family and friends present in support, the newly graduated recruits displayed precision military foot drills, weapons drills, and a physical fitness display as per tradition.
The Training Department, commanded by Commander Byron Brown provided a training programme that covered professional disciplines such as Navigation, Seamanship, Weapons Handling, Defence Act and Regulations, Survival, Firefighting and Communications.
Recipients of Special Awards included Best Male Recruit Award recipient was Glenderson Black and Best Female Recruit was Miah Bethel.
As the new entry marched off the parade ground they marched onto a new way of living, a culture, as the newest addition to the Royal Bahamas Defence Force.
Commodore Raymond E. King’s continues to prioritize personnel, ensuring that they are properly equipped, trained, and prepared to confront issues of maritime security, disaster relief, and peacekeeping, and ultimately fulfilling our mandate of Guarding Our Heritage.
