Pretoria – South African Police Service (SAPS) Gauteng Provincial Commissioner Lieutenant General Elias Mawela has retired after 39 years of uninterrupted service.
National Commissioner of the SAPS General Fannie Masemola on Wednesday wished Lieutenant General well on his retirement.
“Today, marks the official retirement of Lieutenant General Mawela from the SAPS after serving for nearly four decades,” said SAPS said in a statement.
“Today, Lieutenant General Mawela will hang up his boots as he bows out of service after 39 years of uninterrupted, loyal and dedicated service.”
Mawela joined the SAPS as a student constable in 1984, where he started serving in the Mamelodi policing precinct and worked his way up in the ranks to the level of Lieutenant General in 2011.
He has served in several senior roles and capacities including that of Deputy Area Commissioner of Pretoria, Component Head: Border policing, Divisional Commissioner: Operational Response Services (ORS) and Natjoints chairperson.
For the past five years he served as a Provincial Commissioner on a five-year contract and his term of office comes to an end today.
General Masemola has praised Mawela for being a great operator and an epitome of a servant leader.
He said Mawela has accomplished a lot during his illustrious career by fostering strong relations with communities and various key stakeholders in the fight against crime which ultimately gave birth to his brainchild “O Kae Molao”.
O Kae Molao saw Gauteng police officers embark on high-density operations to trace wanted suspects, confiscate illegal goods, and recover illegal and stolen vehicles and firearms.
This ultimately birthed “Operation Shanela”.
General Masemola said Mawela has left the organisation richer as his legacy will be used by future police generations.
“This is a commander who has left an indelible footprint as an operator in all units, stations, and components he has led,” said General Masemola.
“A true operator, a man of action, to him it didn’t matter where he was deployed to, he served the people of South Africa for the past four decades with sheer diligence and commitment.
“It has been an honour to serve alongside you. We will miss him and wish him well in his retirement. Thank you to his family for allowing him to serve.
“From the men and women in blue, we salute you for your unwavering commitment.”
SAPS national spokesperson Brigadier Athlenda Mathe said the SAPS has already embarked on a recruitment process to fill the vacancy of Gauteng Provincial Commissioner.
