Female Public Safety officials have been encouraged to celebrate and uplift one another beyond the festivities of Women’s Month in August of each year. The City’s women in uniform were recently treated to a luncheon under the theme “is the glass ceiling for women in the workplace real or imaginary?”

Scores of women in uniform and non-uniform attended the event hosted by Tebogo Modiba, the Acting Head of the Public Safety Department.

During the ceremony, more than five women from the JMPD and EMS were recognised for going above and beyond the call of duty in performing their duties.

Angie Mokasi, the JMPD Director for Auxiliary Services, flanked by Patricia Rampota, a Major General from the South African Police Service (SAPS), presented the women with a variety of gifts.

“You cannot benefit from nickel-and-diming your colleague,” Modiba told attendees.

“I urge women to encourage and support each other especially in the workplace. Women are as good as their male counterparts,” he added.

The luncheon was sponsored by Old Mutual, a pan-African investment, savings, insurance, and banking group as well as AVBOB, Africa’s largest funeral insurance and burial service solution.

A representative from Old Mutual had an educational dialogue with the attendees, providing tips on how to invest and save money for rainy days.

“When a woman is financially independent, she has the ability to live life on her own terms,” said Dineo Makgeru from Old Mutual.

The event also featured a raffle, which saw two women from the Public Safety department winning goodie bags sponsored by Old Mutual.

Modiba congratulated all women in the department for the milestones they’ve achieved since the advent of democracy. He applauded the department for endorsing five female Directors.

He said the same zeal that men use in speeches to uplift women during the month of August should be used to promote them in the workplace.

“It’s about time that we find an opportunity to make sure that promises made to women in the workplace come to fruition”.