Court intervenes as Chiepe family fights dirty
Mpho Mokwape | Tuesday November 1, 2022 06:00
The drama is unfolding publicly as family members comprising Dr Chiepe’s nieces and nephews have embarked on a bitter war path that has even reached the courts.
As they accuse each other of deceit and betrayal regarding the icon who is referred to as Botswana's woman of many firsts, which accolades include being the first woman to serve in Cabinet.
Now it appears the cousins have teamed against their own siblings. Sefalana Modisi, Botshabelo Bagwasi, Violent Asem and Monametsi Chiepe are at each other’s throats throwing accusations at one another.
Modisi who is the main one accused of exploiting her aunt by Dr Chiepe’s adopted daughter, Asem in her defence said Asem had no right to even talk because she abandoned her mother over some 55 years ago.
She said in those years, Asem only visited twice and even then her visits were solely for her reasons and that while she was in the country she would never care for Dr Chiepe. “I have been the one taking care of my aunt all these years and to be accused of exploiting her is unfair on me. They were not here, I was,” Modisi said.
On the other hand, Chiepe (Monametsi) who is handling matters on behalf of Asem as she is away has vowed to send Modisi to court for her criminal activities against their aunt.
He said the matter was of grave trauma to the family and he has tried to resolve it amicably with Modisi without third parties to no avail. “She abused the immense trust placed on her by Dr Chiepe not to mention the good faith the family had in her as one of the caregivers. She is a matriarch of sorts and a role model to many younger members of the greater family.
For this revelation to have become manifest, it has been a challenge for the family to reconcile,” he said. He explained that he was particularly concerned about the ease with which Modisi could heartlessly pursue a legal escape root knowing fully well the devastating impact it would have not only on the family but on the health of Dr Chiepe whose personality, age, and love for peace and family building are now being bombed with reckless abandon through court action.
The Genesis of the matter The fights between the family members reportedly started when Dr Chiepe’s adopted daughter Violent Asem, who is married and based in the United States of America and a nephew, Monametsi Chiepe, embarked on extensive investigations regarding her assets after suspecting something amiss.
Along the way, it is reported that they discovered there has been major exploitation of assets and financial resources carried by Dr Chiepe’s other niece and nephew, being Sefalana Modisi and Botshabelo Bagwasi, respectively.
According to documents obtained by The Monitor, the investigating party found collaboration with an attorney which gave Modisi the power of attorney to control Dr Chiepe’s assets without her and other family members’ knowledge.
As the other family members allegedly started embarking on a mission to get to the bottom of things it has been said that a bitter war of words ensued between the four and other family members who are mostly cousins forcing the family affair to spill the court route in a way to redeem the situation. Asem and Chiepe are accusing their fellow cousins of exploiting Dr Chiepe’s assets by enriching themselves and then when caught in the act rushing to court to try and cover up their deeds.
In court documents, Dr Chiepe’s niece and adopted daughter, Asem and her nephew Chiepe accused their fellow cousin Modisi of rushing to court to obtain an order to hide her exploitation of Dr Chiepe’s resources without her knowledge by requesting that she be declared of unsound mind.
The court battle On September 20 the pair, Modisi and Bagwasi, reportedly went to court to file a case against Asem and Chiepe.
The pair as applicants in the papers wanted an interim interdict on an urgent basis pending the outcome of an application for an order declaring Dr Chiepe (referred to in court papers as ‘the Patient’) to be of unsound mind and as such incapable of managing her own affairs and the appointment of a curator to her estate.
“We seek an interdict restraining them from denying access to a medical practitioner to interview the patient at her residence to ascertain whether she is of unsound mind and as such incapable of managing her affairs for the purpose of applying to court for appointment of curator,” reads the documents. Modisi further sought a final interdict against Chiepe interdicting and restraining him from making any defamatory statements of and concerning her including statements that she was a criminal and that she was going to jail.
In the application, they also sought punitive costs against their cousins.
According to the papers, on September 22 the applicants, Modisi and Bagwasi, obtained an order amongst others declaring that Dr Chiepe was of unsound mind and therefore unable to take care of herself and her assets.
The order was reportedly obtained without notice to the respondents, their cousins, Asem and Chiepe, particularly even the date of the scheduled hearing at which the orders were obtained. Court intervention Following the applicants obtaining a court order amongst others declaring Dr Chiepe of unsound mind, the respondents engaged attorney Dutch Leburu to fight for them.
The respondents argued that Dr Chiepe was completely of sound mind, that she has been able to take care of herself all these years and that Modisi and Bagwasi only did what they did because of greed. “Modisi and Bagwasi betrayed their aunt in the most unimaginable way despite having trusted them with her life. They found a source of enriching themselves with our aunt’s assets as is evidenced by Modisi even transferring one of our aunt’s property into her name with the help of Bagwasi,” reads the court papers.
The pair believes that just like any elderly person their aunt was bound to be forgetful and that should not in any way be used as a weapon to render her incapable or even labelled a patient of unsound mind.
On October 7, the court granted them orders rescinding the orders and also giving them a chance to defend the application filed by Modisi and Bagwasi. “The orders granted against the respondents on September 22 are hereby set aside and the respondents given leave to defend the application against them. The applicants are to pay the costs of the suit,” read the orders. The matter stands to continue before court. Of siblings and cousins: Main characters Modisi: Dr Chiepe’s niece born from Monametsi Chiepe, being the elder brother to Dr Chiepe. She is accused of immensely enriching herself using her aunt’s resources without her knowledge.
Bagwasi: Dr Chiepe’s nephew born from Taolo Bagwasi, Dr Chiepe’s sister and he is Asem’s elder brother. He is accused of helping Modisi exploit her aunt’s financial resources and assets. Asem: The adopted daughter of Dr Chiepe born from Dr Chiepe’s sister Taolo Bagwasi. She was given to Dr Chiepe at the age of four since she had no biological children.
She is the younger daughter of Bagwasi. She is accused of abandoning her adoptive mother for over 50 years and never taking care of her or her health. Chiepe: The nephew of Dr Chiepe born from her elder brother Monametsi Chiepe, also his namesake. He is the one reportedly uncovering the abuse of her aunt’s assets and has vowed to fight to the very end to return all that was stolen from his aunt.
The quartet bitterly at odds before court are cousins who also share siblinghood and according to the court papers, the family is divided over the matter. Other cousins are on the sidelines supporting whomever they choose but the majority seems to be behind Asem and Chiepe as they all believe their aunt has been exploited and left with nothing.
It would seem easier to assume the worst instead of the good in a world where no good deed goes unpunished.