From stories these creatures were witches' pets sent on errands to bewitch  innocents in the night. According to legend they had no tongues, could not speak but were hardworking in the employ of these mean, indolent and vindictive witches. A zombie-owner did not have to do work; she/he went to bed early, got up in the morning to survey fields ploughed, weeded or harvested by bomatholwane when everybody was asleep. Besides bomatholwane were employed to eliminate adversaries real or suspected. I could not believe matholwane stories, not even the fascinating ones that now and then they would be caught by muti magicians who paraded them in full view of villagers overawed by the power of magicians.

Now in my old age, I am amazed at Batswana, tongue-tied, but labouring hard to create wealth to donate to aliens and a few alien-overfriendly kinsfolk; I am appalled by a handful of apologists who defend neo- witch(es) and unwittingly the discredited matholwane culture.

We are supposed to be a civilized democratic republic, free citizens enjoying equal opportunities. That implies nepotism and patronage should be banished from our republic, jobs and employment should be on merit.

Unluckily, the opposite is the case. If you be the top-dog you can appoint your nearest relative to a topmost post and overlook whatever wrong he/she does; at council level you can have councillors specially-appointed on the basis of membership of your party, which has the reins of power and you can play deaf when the public screams, 'stop looting the public coffers!' You can staff the boards of public enterprises with members of your party regardless of merit and tell anybody who squeals, 'I am the power and the glory!' The norm is that in a democratic republic government decisions are taken by Parliament, cabinet or sub-committees authorised to take such decisions. Not in our zombie-populated republic. One man issues directives. We have a Minister of Finance and Development Planning tasked to prepare annual financial budget based on revenue collectable from a number of sources to redistribute to projects in terms of priority needs of the community - infrastructure, security, social needs etc.

The latest in our republic is one department, 'The Police Services' can collect fines from motorists and utilise such revenue for its department alone! Why the tedium of the budget process if collection and redistribution can be so simplified? Why have policy that stipulates, regardless of where minerals or any natural resources are found they will benefit the whole community equally? Why the inconsistencies?  We are aware the government skimps 'the police services' adequate resources notwithstanding the escalation of crime which threaten our security with potential to scare away foreign direct investment. The government tries to hide the fact that it has its priorities skewed. How can the military be a priority department in peacetime, while crime escalates? The BDP cannot explain why the DIS, deserves more resource allocation than the police, except that it is a pet department of the President; there is no sense for BDF and DIS getting the lion's share of budget allocation and then being assigned to assist police in the duties they could accomplish well independently, provided they had adequate resources to recruit, train and equip their department. Have we become zombies to watch all this mismanagement of our scarce resources tongue-tied?

The President, a military strategist, has outmaneuvered all of us. Conscious 'roadmap' is the buzzword in politics nowadays.  He opened his inauguration with the roadmap gambit of four Ds, later inflated to five: Democracy, Development, Dignity, Discipline and Delivery! The Ds resonate with everyone's political sentiment. What Motswana can quibble with any of the Ds? None! Unwittingly, we find ourselves at the tip of the man's finger. Next, he employs the tried and tested autocratic tactic of divide and rule!

See how he paralyses Barataphathi:  'PHK , stay in your Ministry; Gomolemo Motswaledi, out for five years; GUS Matlhabaphiri come back to be Assistant Minister; Kwerepe takeover from GM, Kagiso Mmusi  investigate Barataphathi who canvassed votes for Dumelang Saleshando; DK investigate who hobnobbed with the opposition to attempt to disorganise my special-elected MPs' list!' For lack of counterstrategy Barataphathi have obviously been relegated to the museum of the have-beens. The big stick and juicy carrot, they work!

He employs the same divide and rule strategy at national level; ingratiating himself with the deprived, beggar class with promise-pregnant visits and fireside chats. If the class complains, he listens; when they beg he gives; the poor are ever vulnerable; begging is an incurable disease, aggravated by ignorance, timidity and superstition.

To this class he is Messiah, his handshake priceless.  DIS has even relaxed security around him for him to be mobbed and hugged!   The middle class, he keeps at arms length. He won't engage with them. In Parliament he avoided debate, he is not used to it, he is used to giving orders and seeing them obeyed, rewarded with 'yes sirs' or ululations. During general elections campaigns he will not engage opposition  leaders in public debates.

Weekly in the House of Commons the prime minister faces MPs in a no-holds-barred  debate on questions and issues of public interest; in South Africa after the State of the Nation Address, the President debates his address and replies to remarks by MPs. Not in our part of the world! Our president interacts more with the masses, they pack a winning vote punch! If you want to be adored by the masses, make them poor and ignorant. The elite are troublesome: they ask questions, argue, criticize and protest.

The villagers and shantytown dwellers are kept apart from the urban dwellers, fed Radio Botswana, Btv and Daily News state propaganda. Kept away thus from opposition parties, they have no alternative solutions to their problems of poverty, illiteracy and superstition. Political party funding could ensure all political parties have equal access to the masses and zombie-culture could be dissipated.