Our Board Members
The Turnstar Board Members brings a wealth of experience and expertise to guide and steer the success of our organization. Committed to upholding the highest standards of corporate governance, our board consists of accomplished individuals with diverse backgrounds and deep industry knowledge.
Leading our board is Mr. Butler Phirie, our esteemed Chairman, who brings decades of experience in the real estate sector. His strategic vision and leadership have been instrumental in shaping Turnstar Holdings’ growth and expansion.
Working alongside Mr. Mr Gulaam Abdoola, our Managing Director, who has a strong background in finance and investment. With his keen financial acumen, he plays a pivotal role in driving our investment strategies and ensuring the financial strength of the company.
We are fortunate to have a dynamic and accomplished group of directors who contribute their expertise to various areas of our business. Mr. Shiran Puvimanasinghe an expert in finance, provides invaluable insights and guidance in identifying lucrative investment opportunities and managing our property portfolio.
Together, our board members work tirelessly to ensure that Turnstar Holdings remains a leading force in the property industry. Their collective wisdom, experience, and strategic decision-making steer us towards continued growth and success.
Mr Butler Phirie – Chairman of the board
Mr. Phirie is a fellow member of the Botswana Institute of Chartered Accountants and the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (UK). He brings with him a wealth of experience, having served at Pricewaterhouse Coopers for 27 years, including 13 years as the Managing Partner. He has also served the Botswana Development Corporation as General Manager Finance for 9 years.
Mr Gulaam Abdoola – Managing Director
Mr Gulaam Abdoola is a founding member of Turnstar Holdings Limited and was the Managing Director at the inception of the Company. He is the Executive Chairman of GH Group, a group of companies with businesses interests in property, retail, wholesale, restaurants, boutiques, tyres, spare parts, and petroleum retail. He has served as Non-Executive Director on various company Boards and as Chairman of Stanbic Bank Botswana, McCarthy Retail Botswana (which comprises Game Discount World, Bee Gee, Savelles, Happy Homes,Bears,Guys & Girls and Bonus Building Supplies) and Prefsure Insurance.
Mr Shiran Puvimanasinghe – Director
Mr Shiran Puvimanasinghe is a Chartered Accountant. He commenced his career in Botswana in 1987 as a Senior Manager at Coopers and Lybrand (now PwC). He served the Botswana Housing Corporation, as a Chief Accountant during the period 1990-1993. He was the Financial Director of Zurich Insurance Company Botswana for 15 years and was subsequently appointed as Chief Executive Officer in 2009. Shiran joined Turnstar Holdings as the Chief Financial Officer, in June 2013.
Ms Victoria Tebele – Director
Ms Victoria Tebele graduated from the University of Botswana with a First Class Bachelor of Commerce (Accounting) in 1992 and attained ACCA in 1998. Ms Tebele is a Fellow Member of both ACCA and the Botswana Institute of Chartered Accountants. Ms Tebele one of our Turnstar Board members has extensive experience in financial and management accounting, risk management, internal auditing, contracts management, corporate governance and people management in a number of industries including mining, financial services, beef production and general maintenance in both the private sector and parastatals. She has served as a Director in a number of boards in the country. She served as a BICA Tax Committee member from 2004 to 2011. She is currently serving as the Treasurer at the Botswana Chamber of Mines and a Board Member at Bank of Botswana, chairing the Bank’s Audit and Risk Committee.
Mr Amaresh Chetty – Director
B Com, PG Dip Bus Management, MBA
Mr Chetty is the Chief Investment Officer at Ngwenya Capital and has in excess of 20 years’ investment and commercial experience across various sectors including but not limited to real estate, healthcare, mining and financial services.
He has served as a director at several companies in South Africa that include:
Ascendis Health Limited (JSE main board) -member of audit and risk committee, Chair of Human Capital Committee and Chair of Social and Ethics committee.
Sunstone Capital Limited – Chairman and chair of the investment committee.
Pepper Club Hotel Investments Ltd – Director and chair of the investment committee.
Rencell Ltd – director
Mr Solomon Seoketsi Mantswe – Director
Mr Solomon Seoketsi Mantswe one of our Turnstar Board members brings over 30 years’ experience in the public service. He was appointed Deputy Commissioner of the Botswana Police Service (BPS) in 2021. Some of his key responsibilities include strategic leadership and management of the BPS, the development and implementation of organisational strategies, directing the Human Resource and Administration of the BPS, Policy direction and stakeholder relations. He gained extensive experience in corporate governance through his service as the Chairman of the Botswana Public Officers Pension Fund (BPOPF) a position he has held since 2017, and also from the various subcommittees of the same board.
Mrs Sethebe Manake – Director
Sethebe Manake is a thought leader and proptech champion in Botswana. The founder and director of Gosmartvalue, has been in the real estate industry for over 14 years, in various management roles within the real estate industry. As Property Manager, Asset Manager and ultimately CEO of a property listed company; Letlole La Rona.
The chartered surveyor in Real Estate Investment and Finance with the Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors, holds a BSc in Property studies from UCT, and an MSc in Strategic Management from the University of Derby, left the corporate world to pursue transformation of the real estate industry, in the form of a research and consulting firm, in search of making the real estate more transparent for informed decision making. In her transition into tech Sethebe amassed some knowledge acquiring several certificates in Business Center Development and Investment Management for Developing countries. Sethebe is an alumni of the first CoHort of Alibaba, Jack Ma’s eFounders initiative with UNCTAD, for Champions of the digital economy in Africa.
She founded GoSmartvalue a leader in transformation of the real estate industry with a robust automated valuation platform, transitioning the valuation process from manual to virtual, promoting objective, reliable property valuations, democratizing real estate information and optimizing business efficiency for investors and real estate funders.
Manake is board member of the Africa Proptech Forum , leading the Botswana Proptech Chapter, serves as President of the Real Estate Institute of Botswana which is the national association of real estate professionals including Estate Agents, Valuers, Property Managers and Auctioneers.
AcMost Innovative Real Estate Data Analytics Firm, 2020 colades
• the Business Excellence Award for Women in Male Dominated Industry 2016,
• Global Female Impact Award 2017,
• Top 100 Women In Developing Countries to Watch in 2018.