The Section Head Brigadier Scott extends a warm welcome to our new support commander Colonel Essie Swarts.
I had the pleasure of interviewing her and I was touched by her humble nature. As she settles in at ORTIA I thought it is good that we know a little about her. She was welcomed by Brigadier Scott on 1 December 2023. She hails from Visible Policing And Operations Veterinary Services, K9
Dog School in Roodepoort Pretoria. She has been in the SAPS for 32 years and as a Luitenant Colonel for 13 years. Her total number of years in support services is a whooping 30 years.
When asked why she chose to become a police woman she proudly responded that ‘my role model was my dad, he was an exemplary police officer”.
He was the district commissioner at Roodeplaat in 1990. She was blessed to be sworn into the SAPS by him. Her hobbies include horse riding, swimming and pistol shooting. She also served at Division Visible Policing as a Skills Development Facilitator.
A feather in her cap is that she studied Advanced Behaviour Of Dogs. She studied in her private time and specifically on how to understand abnormal behaviour in dogs, especially their aggression, such as why a dog will bite its handler etc. In a nutshell Colonel Swarts can easily analyse dogs. During her extensive research over a period of time she became a sought after officer to assist the SAPS Veterinary Services. Apart from her support services duties she sacrificed her private time for the SAPS because she is passionate about dogs.
Our new support commander also has a passion for horses. In 2007 she was nominated to be the chief co-ordinator at the Division Women’s Network. She was solely instrumental in the extensive research on horse riding for disabled officers and members. She drew up the first SAPS Plan on horse riding for the disabled as requested by the Divisional Commissioner Visible Policing.
When I asked her how is she settling in with us at ORTIA, she immediately smiled and happily responded that she is excited to serve us because she has not worked at an airport before. She views her new position as a blessing and a challenge. She intends to do her best for ORTIA. During my interaction with her I noticed that she is soft spoken, patient, understanding and approachable. Her body language confirmed that she is full of joy to be with us.
Throughout the interview she emphasised that she has our best interest at heart. Her main aim is to ensure unity amongst her officers and members. Working as a team is important to her as she dislikes any form of division amongst us. She gets much joy to see each of her members excel in their specific field. What touched me was that she accepts that every member irrespective of their rank has something to offer to ORTIA. Her intention is to encourage each one of us to excel at our GOD given gifts. She will do her best to eradicate gossip and negativity.
Her many good qualities is certainly needed to be a successful support commander. After listening to her vast experience I can safely state that she is a seasoned officer. She further stated that she loves pistol shooting hence she was selected to represent Head Office in the SAPS National Practical Pistol Shooting.
Brigadier Scott and his management wishes Colonel Swart all the best in this phase of her career.