06 Jul 2014

Civil servants should view themselves as servants and not as masters of the nation, says the Minister of Defence, Justice and Security, Mr Dikgakgamatso Seretse.

Speaking at his ministry’s second awards ceremony in Gaborone on Thursday July 3, Mr Seretse also urged his staff to steer away from anything that would derail their neutrality, forthrightness and integrity in their service to the nation.

He noted that his ministry continues to make significant progress with respect to performance, adding that they have climbed the ladder from being one of the low performing ministries to one of the highest performing within a short period of time.

The minister said they continued to build strong and strategic partnerships within government, nationally, regionally and internationally. He added that they were all geared towards the achievement of excellent service delivery to their customers.   

Mr Seretse said it was remarkable that his ministry’s headquarters, despite its acute manpower and structural limitations, has reached commendable performance levels in the execution of its core mandate. He added that the  mandate was to coordinate the mandates and responsibilities of its department and agencies.

Minister Seretse said their challenges have sometimes appeared insurmountable, but that they have remained focused and deliberate in their strides towards their goals and objectives.   

He said they have made significant strides in the provision of access to justice and ensuring the safety and security of every individual.

He noted that they were charged with translating political direction into well-functioning and efficient policies and strategies responsive to situations on the ground, adding that they also shoulder the responsibility of informing and educating the nation on such policies and strategies.

He called on those who did not recieve any awards to work harder and not to lose hope or sight of the goals the ministry strives to achieve.

In her welcoming remarks, Ms Segakweng Tsiane said awards were about service offered by officers to customers, and that it was also about work/life balance. She added that through awards they share with their families the results of their long hours from home.


Deserving officers went away with certificates, trophies and money ranging from P1 000 to a 13^th cheque. ENDS