Deputy Minister of Correctional Services, Lindiwe Ntshalintshali joined the DCS head office female officials in a prayer service at Kgoši Mampuru II Management Area Mess Hall on 15 August 2024. The service held under the theme: “Celebrating the parting of the Red Sea in Women’s Lives”, was part of series of events that the Department of Correctional Services (DCS) is rolling out this month to commemorate Women’s Month. The August prayer session was aimed at celebrating the role of women in society and in the workplace.
In her remarks, Deputy Minister Ntshalintshali spoke at length about the importance of empowering women in the workplace and the challenges they face in society. “Every department has its own challenges and as DCS, we are not immune to them. With August being Women’s Month, this prayer came at the right time. We must remind our children that this freedom did not come easy. Those women that marched to Pretoria on 09 August 1956 fought for all men to walk free without being asked to produce any identity document,” she said.
Deputy Minister Ntshalintshali said women were historically not allowed to occupy certain positions in society. “As women, we are faced with cultural practices that oppress us, and we are sometimes subjected to ill-treatment in the workplace. Women must be able to express themselves freely, and must be afforded the same career growth opportunities as everyone else. While I am here at the DCS, I do not want to hear about “PHD” (Pull her down),” she continued. She called on those in positions of responsibilities to invest in grooming others.
Acting Chief Deputy Commissioner (CDC): Human Resources, Linda Bond said she was grateful that the team that was behind this initiative saw it fit to have a women’s prayer service as a way to commemorate Women’s Month.
“This is the time, more than ever before, that women need prayer. It is true that we need a breakthrough, the parting of the red sea has already happened. We need to remind ourselves to carry the burden of helping our partners and husbands that are under increasing pressure than ever before, and for our children who face threats we know nothing about,” she said.
Nomfundo Msolo, a DCS female official gave a testimony about her spiritual journey. “When I joined the DCS in 2012, I did not know how to express myself in English because I am from rural Eastern Cape. However, I was mentored by a colleague, and I followed her every move in order to learn more,” said Msolo.
She likened her journey to Phoebe, a church cleaner whose story is captured in Romans 16 verse 1-2. “Like Phoebe from the book of Romans who was tasked with cleaning the church but did not understand anything about the job she was doing but yet executed it with diligence and love, I followed every guidance I was provided with,” she explained.