Teaching was in his blood stream and it could not have been an easy call to decide to sever ties with one’s 30-year-old passion and love.
Leaving five years shy of the mandatory retirement age, caught by surprise many of his colleagues and well wishers. His youngish look also betrayed him. He does not look like an old croc as there are no traces of old age in him; he looks smart, fresh and ebullient and no one thought he could be anywhere near the retiring range.
Some could say if it is a case of having good genes but what is indisputable is the man has taken good care of himself.
In fact one could be excused for thinking that he is 10 years younger than his actual age. It was no small wonder for those who loved him dearly and still looking up to him for mentorship to call his retirement a premature departure. In their view, the man still had sufficient fire power in his arsenal to continue navigating matters of education.
But Timela saw things differently. His was not a spur of the moment decision or one forced by circumstances but was planned quietly over a long period of time. It takes faith in God and confidence in one’s abilities to make a bold decision to quit a plum and handsomely rewarding job and plunge one self into a new world of uncertainty. Many people want to retire but they just cannot pluck the courage to do so. Only Biblical Paul had the audacity to undertake a journey riddled with uncertainties. Paul says, “and see I go bound in spirit to Jerusalem not knowing the things that will happen to me and wherever I go the spirit promises trials and tribulations.”
Yet Paul never had second thoughts about his travelling sea journeys no matter how hazardous they were. So Timela is our modern day Paul. Timela was a humble school principal who, like George Washington, rose to power reluctantly. He was not power drunk and always resisted the temptation to allow power to go into his head. He was gentlemanly par excellence giving credit where it is due. He was conscious of the fact that the post of school principal is synonymous with selfless service. Though wielding enormous powers as a principal, he remained a servant rather than a master of his charges. He had the rare wisdom of knowing that leadership is about giving more than one can take and if need be, digging deep into one’s pocket to keep the school going. He was a hustler of note, constantly knocking on the doors of potential sponsors to solicit funding for excellence awards.
Rewarding staff and reinforcing good behaviour and teaching practices were close to his heart. He built a network of alliances and partnerships, which impacted enormously on the morale of his troops. In a bid to grow interest in farming, he came up with the initiative of giving goats to staff who excelled in their areas. In my oversight responsibility, my professional interaction with Timela was short but eventful.
Fate brought us together in December 2020 when I began my role as Chief Education Officer for Selebi-Phikwe. I made my first visit to his school in January 2021 to gauge the health of the organisation. I had chosen his Lebogang Junior Secondary School as my first port of call because it was academically trailing behind the other five sister schools. I was a little nervous. I did not know what manner of man was my host principal - Timela.
Because not all principals are eager to entertain visitors from the Regional office especially when the results are not rosy. But I found Timela kind and hospitable. He opened his heart to me allowing room for a cross pollination of ideas and exchange of notes on pedagogical and governance issues. On account of his warm demeanour, we discussed openly road blocks slowing progress in his school and shared interventions we considered appropriate. Our efforts were not in vain. In one year, his school jumped from close to 50% to close to close to 70%. Timela is arguably the best school turnaround champion Selebi-Phikwe has ever produced. Every time I met him and asked about his school, he would give a reassuring report.
Timela does not bear grudges. He has a forgiving heart. Though it was a rarity, there were times we exchanged ‘professional fire’ when we took diametrically opposed positions on a particular matter. After sleeping on a matter, he would not be shy to come the next day and tender an apology whenever he felt his position was an error of judgement. I will always respect Timela for his calm, measured and sober assessment of issues.
He is a true patriot who would not forsake his national duty and I am confident that he would be ready to offer services to the nation albeit in a different capacity. He left an indelible legacy of high performance at Lebogang JSS and made the work of successors relatively lighter. He has bequeathed to his successor his time tested motto of position yourself and stay focused. I wish this selfless patriotic school turnaround champion longevity, good health and a productive retirement.
