The first stop – services-wise – for South Africa’s seventh minister of defence and military veterans since 1994 was the SA Army where Angie Motshekga and an entourage including her deputies literally had the red carpet rolled out for them ahead of briefings and viewing an equipment display.
Since being appointed to replace Thandi Modise post the national and provincial elections that saw a government of national unity (GNU) formed, Motshekga – with the exception of a brief stint as Acting President while Cyril Ramaphosa was in Zimbabwe for a Southern African Development Community (SADC) ordinary head of state and government summit on 17 August – has concentrated on meeting “components of the Department of Defence and Military Veterans (DoDMV)”.
Briefings and interactions with, in no particular order, the Department of Military Veterans (DMV), Armscor, the Military Ombud, Defence Force Service Commission (DFSC), Military Veterans’ Appeal Board, and the Advisory Council on Military Veterans are to be followed by calls on the four SA National Defence Force (SANDF) services.
Number one on the list was the SA Army with Motshekga yesterday (Monday, 26 August) touching down at the landward force headquarters in Dequar Road, off Kgosi Mampuru Street on the eastern side of the Pretoria central business district (CBD).
Among others, the ministerial retinue heard SA Army Acting Deputy Chief, Major General Reneé Mercuur, elaborate on the functions, responsibilities and way forward for the landward force. Additionally, her presentation gave insights on the strategic profile, current and future macro structures and responsibilities as well as key objectives, “critical success factors” and the state of the landward force.
The Motshekga and company SA Army call was, according to Lieutenant Daniel Maluleke of SA Army Corporate Communication, part of a series to divisions and services “aimed at gaining a deeper understanding of operations, challenges and successes”. “The tour,” he reported, “is specifically designed to facilitate engagement, foster collaboration, and ensure that the ministry is aligned with the needs and objectives of the South African military ecosystem”.
Scheduled, but not cast in stone, for 26 August to 17 September, the tour will see stops at the SA Air Force (SAAF) also yesterday at Air Force Base (AFB) Waterkloof, as well as the SA Military Health Service (SAMHS) and SA Navy. Still on the itinerary, as per the DoD Head of Communication (HoC), Siphiwe Dlamini, are stops at “critical divisions” with logistics and joint operations named.
The “engagements” will introduce South Africa’s third woman defence and military veterans minister to “the full spectrum of the entire defence portfolio”.
Motshekga will also, the DoD statement has it, “embark on various visits across the country to engage with soldiers on the ground”.
