Johannesburg - The chief of the SANDF has warned his troops to rise above party politics and serve the constitution.
As he presented more than 120 soldiers with medals at the Bloemfontein Defence Sports ground on Wednesday, General Solly Shoke said neither disloyalty nor party partisanship would be tolerated.
Leaking sensitive information, as the SA National Defence Union had done during the Battle of Bangui last year, was an act of betrayal, tantamount to treachery.
Without naming anyone, Shoke said the leaks had happened from within.
“I noted with concern that when you were still in Bangui, some people had the nerve to go on radio and say what you were doing.
“If anything had happened as a result of those leaks and people died, you would have been party to such a treacherous deed.”
The Battle of Bangui in the Central African Republic was fought between March 22 and 24 last year. The running battle claimed the lives of 15 SANDF troops. A further 27 were wounded. It remains the fiercest and bloodiest battle fought by South African soldiers in the democratic era.
Shoke said the battle was important as “it demonstrated the zeal, determination and professionalism of our soldiers.”
“We weren’t there to fight. It was a training team taken by surprise. They fought with very small numbers against a much larger force and survived. We are still to write about that,” Shoke said.
A total of 30 iPhrothiya ye Silva medals were handed out on Wednesday to soldiers who had “distinguished themselves by outstanding leadership or outstanding meritorious service and particular devotion to duty”.
A further 91 soldiers were mentioned in dispatches, making 1 Parachute Battalion the most decorated unit in the annals of South African military history.
Its commanding officer, Lieutenant-Colonel Dumisani Mziki, who was second in command of the Bangui task force, said afterwards: “What they did we will never forget. When I see my troops getting their medals I’m very proud.”
1 Para In, which consists of four companies, had one company in Bangui. Every single member of that company has now been decorated for valour, leadership or outstanding service, - an unprecedented achievement.
Behind them on the rugby field stood the honour guard drawn from another company of 1 Para By. Shoke hailed them for the work they had done in the eastern DRC, dealing a “severe blow to the M23 rebels”.
They, too, would be honoured for their service, he promised.
The courage of on Wednesday’s recipients had made the SANDF an object of respect throughout the continent, Shoke added.
“You stood by the oath you took as soldiers, you did us proud. The continent is proud, we love you.”
For the rest of the defence force, Shoke’s message was: “Be loyal, rise above party politics, be loyal.”
Afterwards, he said it was important to “emphasise time and time again and inculcate into the mind of a soldier that we should rise above petty party politics.
“We should not be trapped into party politics, because you can see what’s happening in Lesotho.”
On Wednesday, he said, was about honouring the heroes.
“They could easily have surrendered, but they didn’t.”
The Star