”Matrics, join the military!” was the call Minister of Defence Mosiuoa Lekota made on Tuesday to last year’s matric class.
Lekota told journalists that he wants more matrics to consider the military as a career, saying defence is about more than warfare, it is also about developing a skilled and disciplined citizenry.
Last week, 4 200 new recruits — out of 75 000 applicants — joined the South African National Defence Force (SANDF) countrywide.
This was the SANDF’s largest volunteer intake to date, the minister said.
Lekota wants more applicants and more money in his budget to accommodate at least another 2 000 recruits this year.
He hopes to convince the education and labour ministries to make more funds available for him to take in another batch of the recruits in July. Alternatively, his department will consider borrowing money.
Asked at Waterkloof air-force base why he wants more applicants, Lekota answered that greater numbers will help sensitise the Cabinet, which he thinks is not doing enough to help both unemployed youths and young people who cannot afford to study.
Lekota also said he is concerned that young people and their parents are not aware of the many opportunities in the military for pilots, navigators, naval combat officers, engineers and accountants.
He said it is not helpful for his department to have programmes for training the youth if information about them is not available to those who qualify.
The department also has a training scheme, called foundation training, for matrics with poor marks who aspire to be pilots and the like.
More than 1 100 students have already passed through this scheme and about 200 will be enrolled this year.
Students on this course receive basic military training in the mornings and academic training in the afternoons.
At the end of the training year, they rewrite those matric subjects in which they had fared poorly.
At the briefing, the minister welcomed two young women from previously disadvantaged backgrounds into the South African Air Force.
Khanyisile Simelane and Thabisile Mahole, both 18 and from Tsakane at Brakpan, matriculated with average grades last year, and Lekota is keen to help them and others in their position.
”A few weeks ago they were in despair … and their career hopes had come to a standstill. Today they are starting a new career in the South African Air Force,” Lekota said. — Sapa