'The gown must go to town'

President Mokgweetsi Masisi’s recent appointment of three well-respected professors from the University of Botswana’s Faculty of Social Sciences, had me in deep thought about the state of our universities and their role in leading the way in politics, governance and the policy space.

For a number of years, our academics and intellectuals have been retreating from the public space back to the confines of university classrooms and offices, away from public platforms and media commentary, and to a certain degree, even from the political space. Is the country experiencing a near lapse into some sort of ‘Orwellian groupthink’ as a result? It is time they returned.

In 1963, in his revered speech, “The African Genius”, Kwame Nkrumah famously argued that “the time has come for the gown to come to town.” As the country battles some of its most pressing challenges, indeed, the ‘gown must come to town’ and intellectual thinkers, professors, writers, artists and teachers must rise to the occasion and play their part in transformation and critical thinking. 

Editor's Comment
Congratulations Anicia Gaothuse!

The contest had 10 beautiful young girls as finalists and unfortunately only one could wear the crown.The judges picked Anicia Gaothuse. To all those who feel their contestant should have won ahead of Anicia for whatever reason, hardly; the judges found Anicia to be the best among the best, so desist from disrespecting our newly crowned queen on social media or anywhere else, for that matter! Each of the 10 beautiful young women had supporters...

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