Let the law take its course

The Monitor Editor | Tuesday August 9, 2022 06:00

When the news broke, a fierce debate ensued. While some members of the public believe that the law should take its cause, there is a section of the population that believes the move to detain the MP is politically motivated.

Matsheka has been in the custody of the Directorate of Intelligence and Security since August 2 and the warrant of arrest was allegedly obtained on August 4, two days later.

The issue of alleged ritual murders has never been an easy one to digest, as the public is still angry. Some even seem to want to pass immediate judgement on Matsheka, but just like any citizen of Botswana, he deserves to have his rights protected.

Yes, no one is above the law, but at the same time, a suspect or defendant in a court of law is assumed to be innocent until proven guilty. We are hurting as a nation; little Tlotso’s life was taken in a gruesome way as he too deserves justice, which hopefully our law enforcement organs will be able to attain for him.

An issue such as this one affects everyone as children are defenceless, and rely on adults (parents and guardians) for protection and many other needs.

Batswana are known to be a peace-loving nation and the phrase ‘it takes a village to raise a child’ jells very well with the kind of people we believe we are, hence the rage behind the issue of Tlotso’s disappearance and unfolding events.

While the nation is justified to be angry and fearful for their children’s safety, let us exercise some patience. We should allow investigations to be completed so that all those involved in the gruesome murder of the little boy are brought to book.

It is high time we lobby our law enforcement officers to fight the ritual murder scourge. Children and adults have been disappearing since time immemorial, but such cases are never given the due attention that they deserve. Even Tlotso’s case, in the beginning, was not given the proper attention, until Lobatse residents demanded justice for the little boy.

The community needs to stand up and demand protection for their lives and their children’s lives. ‘Bo raboko’ have no place in our society and should not be allowed to roam the streets snatching our children willy-nilly. While demanding justice for Tlotso and other victims of ritual murders, let us however do it with caution! Let us be careful not to find ourselves falling into the trap of vilifying innocent people. Equally, we should not resort to taking the law into our own hands. We have a very capable justice system and we hope that justice will finally prevail!