The Minister of Defence and Military Veterans, Lindiwe Sisulu today called on the Officers Commanding (OC) South African Army to continue the good work and commitment demonstrated during the 2010 soccer world cup and also ensures that all soldiers respect the constitution and the SANDF code of conduct.
The Minister was addressing more than 200 Officers Commanding the SA Army at their mid year strategic planning and review session.The Minister participated on discussions that focused on reviewing all the operations, developing plans for the coming year and addressing challenges within the service.The meeting also looked at measures to ensure discipline within the Force and uphold the constitution at all times.
The Minister listened to presentations from different sections of the Army which detailed how they are implementing their programmes, dealing with grievances, and ensuring that soldiers are proud of the SANDF and what it stands for every day.
The Minister told the officers commanding led by the Chief of the Army, Lieutenant General Shoke that the Commander in Chief, the Cabinet and all South Africans are very proud of their excellent work.
“The Army is the backbone of all our operations, on behalf of the Commander in Chief, President Jacob Zuma and the Cabinet I would like to extend our greatest thanks to the work you have done during the world cup, the excellent work in protecting the hospitals during the recent public servants strike and the work you continue to do in our borders” she said.
She added that reports from the borders of KwaZulu-Natal, Limpopo and Mpumalanga show that the “South African National Defence Force (SANDF) has arrived”. “I am told that poachers are running for their life on the border of KwaZulu Natal, vehicle stealing syndicates on the border of Mpumalanga and Mozambique are beginning to feeling the pain as we arrest then everyday, and criminal syndicates on our border with Zimbabwe are also running, we are moving to finalise details for the deployment by early next year on the Lesotho and Free State border” she said.
She added that she met with the leadership of AgriSA to discuss partnership in patrolling the border, sharing information and stopping stock theft and other criminal activities in the Free State. “I will visit the farming community in the Free State very soon to share with them our final plans in preparation for the deployment of the SANDF along the Lesotho border, I can proudly say this because I know that the Army will do us very proud” she said.
After a presentation on the role of the army in external peace keeping deployment the Minister told the meeting that they must walk tall after what they have done for the people of Burundi, Sudan and the Democratic Republic og Congo (DRC).
“We have rebuilt Burundi, we are working with the people of Sudan and the DRC to train and build their security forces, we must be proud that children in Burundi today due to our hard work, they can dream of a brighter future, we must be proud of ourselves”
The Minister indicated that challenges of shortage of financial resources in the SA Army would be addressed to ensure that the Army can continue to implement all its programmes.
“We are prioritising landward forces to ensure that we can implement our programmes to protect our country and also assist to address other challenges confronting our people like shortage of community infrastructure like bridges and roads, the SANDF will now play a greater role in supporting municipalities and other institutions of Government.
The Army mid year strategic session will continue until Friday the 15th of October 2010 focussing on reviewing the past financial year and planning for the next year.The Minister will attend other planning session of the Divisions of the SANDF to listen to views from commanders and also input in the planning processes.
Enquiries:
Ndivhuwo Mabaya, Head of Media Services, Ministry of Defence and Military Veterans
Cell: 083 645 7838
E-mail: Ndivhuwo.mabaya@dod.mil.za
