Meet a BDF general called Hallelujah!

Richard Moleofe | Friday May 20, 2016 14:43

He hails from Moshupa in the Southern District and started his school in the same village in 1972. After completing his secondary education he joined the newly formed Botswana military in 1984 as an Officer Cadet. He progressed through the ranks after his commissioning to the current one in 2014.

He stands as one of the contestants for the position of Commander of the Defence Force as it is expected to fall vacant before the end of the year. He is the most junior of the other three major generals and one wonders if his first name will make a difference. Named Hallelujah at the time of his birth, he probably will attract the blessings of the Almighty to be promoted to the rank of lieutenant general.

I still maintain that the Commander-in-Chief’s choice lies in Major General Segokgo. However, the unexpected can happen and General Khama is usually full of surprises. But that will not be the best thing for our military.

If this appointment could be thrown to the soldiers to elect their commander in a democratic fashion, Seikano would probably earn the most votes. However, the military is never a democratic institution anywhere in the world even though it exists to protect democracy and its institutions.

His last appointment was that of Brigade Commander at No. 2 Infantry Brigade based at its headquarters in Donga, Francistown. He is a people’s man and many at No. 2 Infantry Brigade were devastated when he was transferred to Gaborone on his current promotion.

He is a humble man who never wants to attract unnecessary publicity. That’s the nature of Special Forces operators. If the president appoints Seikano as CDF, the military organisation would turn a new leaf in the way it spends on its transport fleet. While in Francistown, he drove an old Toyota Camry that had been used by two of his predecessors. Currently he is driving an old Land Rover station wagon which was earlier used by Major General Tlhokwane while he was Deputy Commander at BDF. According to his Batmen, his philosophy is; “Why buy a new one if the old one is still running well.”

BDF needs to have a new outlook in the way it does its procurement. This is the man who can bring a total turn around in the way the organisation has been practicing the procurement and use of assets. But BDF by all standards is the best in government when you compare it to other departments. While at the rank of Lieutenant Colonel, Seikano showed a level of commitment never seen in anti poaching operations. In 2006, he occupied most of his time not with leadership issues, but patrolling the wildlife parks. He invested a lot of his time in protecting the riches of this country. If appointed commander, we will see huge military resources being channelled towards this investment. The military is an economic liability. He would let  the military help in growing the economy through sustaining the tourism industry.

Another formidable heavyweight contender is Major General Gotsileene Morake. Morake joined the military the same year as the outgoing commander. He would certainly benefit in changes to the BDF Act. That is the raising of retirement age to sixty.

Morake is a pioneer by nature and he has proven himself several times during his service. He was Officer Commanding of Officer Cadet Course in 1990 at Force Training Establishment. He had just been given a used South Korean camp with dilapidated structures, that was abandoned after the completion of the Serowe/Orapa road.

He later became the first Commandant at the opening of the Command and Staff College in Gaborone. He set the bar far too high for most aspirers. He is an enthusiastic and charismatic character. He is equally popular with soldiers and they often call him “Goose”, a nickname derived from his first name Gotsileene.

If Goose ascends to the position of Commander, BDF will be transformed beyond recognition. One thing that he is good at is making independent and authentic decisions. He is not a copycat, something that most people in the BDF seem to suffer from.  When he was Officer Commanding for Officer Cadets, he changed the landscape on training. Everything changed to include first grade meals for the trainees. Fruits became a part of everyday menu.  I had always been worried that the Command and Staff College was staffed with a lot of personnel from Force Training Establishment. But with Goose at the helm, he created a professional military institution of international standard. The problem with FTE staff is that they wanted to transplant the fashion and attitudes of their old establishment into the new.

Major General Morake is an adorer of two important characters in the military sciences. It is the ancient Chinese war philosopher by the name of San Tsu and Machiavelli. Tsu’s book tittled The Art of War formed a greater part of his approach to military science.

Goose is a military academician of note. In his leadership approach, he has always relied on Murphy’s Law, “Anything that can go wrong will go wrong.” That has driven Goose in the quest for new things and implementation of new ideas.

Because of this philosophy, he does not withhold his intuition for experimenting with new things. At the end of it all, BDF is full of qualified people who will certainly do a good job at the helm of the organisation. The nation does not need to have sleepless nights on that. With that note, we wish Major General Segokgo all the best as the Commander of the Defence Force waiting in the wings.