8 minute read
The life of a legend of the Emergency Services Department, Deputy Chief Molelekwa Peter Motolla
By Company Commander Lindsay Z Mnguni, City of Tshwane Emergency Services
Peter Motolla has recently gone on retirement and the City of Tshwane Emergency Services Department held a prestigious farewell function for him at Central Emergency Services Station in Bosman Street, Pretoria in South Africa.
It was a great and momentous occasion, with a grand parade by our colleagues from the department.
Senior managers and a considerable number of staff attended the function on the day, all of them wishing to say goodbye to the legend they love.
He was interviewed by the Company Commander Lindsay Z Mnguni, standing in as City of Tshwane Emergency Services’ public information and liaison officer with the aim of finding out more about the man who has served the community of Tshwane and the rest of the nation for over 40 years with dignity, pride and honour.
Although he has a dignified aura about him as befitting a fire chief, he is also very humble and has a twinkle in his eye, especially when he starts speaking about fire engines and firefighters.
This is testimony of how truly he loved his job.
The conversation went as follows:
CC MnguniGood morning, Deputy Chief Molelekwa Peter Motola, sir and welcome to the City of Tshwane Emergency Services Department once again. Thank you for coming to visit us as we would like to interview you about your career and your ultimate retirement after such long service. Can you please tell us about your upbringing? Where were you raised and what kinds of things did you enjoy as a youngster? Tell us your age, where you were born and your qualifications, education and training. Tell us briefly about your family, siblings, etc.
Deputy Chief MotollaGood morning, CC Mnguni and thank you for having me. Thank you to the department for granting this opportunity to be interviewed, sir. I am the second of three siblings, born in Mamelodi on 26 June 1959 and I grew up there as a young person.
CC MnguniHow did you progress as a firefighter or emergency official, from the time you started as a trainee firefighter until your retirement? Please share your success story as you rose up the ranks, sir.
Deputy Chief MotollaI matriculated in 1979 and I joined the Pretoria Fire Department in 1982. The fire department then was sadly still for whites only and I was therefore hired at the Ambulance Service Subsection, although my heart and passion were with the fire department. I never gave up, but I said I will also become a firefighter one day.
I became committed to my work and after six months I was promoted as a Senior Ambulance Personnel Member. Within two years I was again promoted to Leading Emergency Official within the same service. I later became a Shift Leader and in 1988 I was the first person to qualify as a Critical Care Assistant. This acquisition of this scarce skill led to me being moved to the Training Centre to train other colleagues.
This was where I was promoted to be a Company Commander, my first rank as an officer, in 1995. I was then asked to establish the Ambulance Training Centre which taught in Afrikaans, as opposed to Johannesburg Training Centre which offered their training in English. In 1997, I was appointed as a District Commander at the Emergency Medical Operations. At that time, I had completed the Officers Methodology Course under the leadership of Assistant Chief Johann van der Sandt who was my lecturer. I could command a drill squad in Afrikaans as an officer, but that was a long time ago. Unfortunately, now I can only remember one drill command, which is “Af marseer!”.
I never gave up my dream to become a firefighter, therefore I pursued my studies at the then Pretoria Technikon until I obtained my BTech Degree in Fire Technology in 2001, being the second person to do so after the late Assistant Chief Andrew Morwale. I believed in education as a method of empowering myself and my colleagues. I then became an assistant chief but first I had to do my practical work at Wonderboom Fire Station as a firefighter.
This is where I realised my dream as I was responding to incidents on the famous “Letaba”, a custom-built Ford fire engine with an open compartment at the back for the crew. This was one of the highlights of my life. I was working under the mentorship of Mr Barend van Dyk then. Afterwards, I came back to Central Fire Station where I was asked to act as the chief fire officer as we were undergoing transformation as the City of Tshwane Emergency Services Department. I had four deputy chief fire officers under my command, two blacks and two whites. When the position of chief fire officer was advertised, I was not appointed but I thank God for that because it was a contractual appointment of five years. Perhaps I would have left the fire department a long time ago had I been appointed in that position.
CC MnguniWhat was your first job? Were you always a firefighter and what attracted you to emergency services? How were your days in the City of Tshwane Emergency Services Department? Did you enjoy being an employee of the City of Tshwane?
Deputy Chief MotollaThis was my first job and I would do it all over again if given the opportunity. As a young boy I used to watch the fire engines and the firefighters and this inspired me a lot to also become a firefighter one day. Of course, I enjoyed my employment in the City of Tshwane and, as a firefighter, I had the best time of my life.
CC MnguniWhat motivates you and drives your passion to live your life the way you do? You seem to be a very motivated person, sir. Who can you say was your role model in life in general and at work and why?
Deputy Chief MotollaFirstly, I trust in God and believe in His grace. Secondly, I was inspired by my mother who never gave up in life. She always worked hard and made sure that we had clothes on our back and food on the table. She made us understand the value of life. Thirdly, I was inspired by my boss, Steve Combrink. I watched his style of management and it gave me great inspiration. He always listened with intention and a good understanding.
Lastly, I was inspired by the current Chief of Emergency Services, Mr Moshema Mosia, whom when I first met him, sometime in the 1990s in Germiston, had the rank of an officer with two epaulets on each shoulder. He was the first black fire officer that I had met in my life and that motivated me to achieve great things in life, just like him.
CC MnguniOnce again thank you, Chief. You are a role model to many of us and who we have watched over the years as you went about doing your job. How would you recommend being a firefighter, especially being an employee working for the City of Tshwane Emergency Services Department? Any words of advice to the current firefighters and other employees about how they can last for so long as you did in the service?
Deputy Chief MotollaI want to say to the people out there who would like to join the fire department that this is a lovely career. There may be challenges but this is a happy place if you have a passion for what you do.
We have a functional structure with clear roles and responsibilities. We operate with discipline, honour and dedication. In the past we had extramural activities, such as sport and athletics. We played volleyball and soccer to keep fit. Our soccer team was called Fire United FC. We would run in the morning before parade and we played darts and snooker to keep the morale and camaraderie up among ourselves. We even participated in the World Firefighter Games. This kept us going.
Deputy Chief MotollaOn behalf of the Emergency Services Department, I would like to say thank you Chief and may God bless you. Now you have more time to enjoy with your loved ones.
As we were almost finished with our interview in the backyard, the ladder drove in and created a rumbling noise which made it difficult to continue with the last part of our conversation. Otherwise, it was clear that I would have continued and listened to the Chief’s memorable and lovely journey as a firefighter. He is now a legendary firefighter and a legendary fire officer.
