Kgotlhang: behind the story
Staff Writer | Friday January 15, 2016 15:47
He was coming from the Universal Church in the Main Mall, a few metres from Mmegi offices. Fed up. Revengeful. Scared. He had a story to tell and was looking to hide in public.
During the week Mmegi newsroom is usually busy in the afternoons (except Fridays of course) and reporters have no time for idle time because of the newspaper deadlines. So unless the source is bringing an earth-shuttering scoop, many reporters are not very keen for an interview.
So Kgotlhang was met by somewhat reluctant business reporter Pauline Dikuelo, but she soon realised her interviewee was onto something unbelievable - read, great story. She called in senior reporter Innocent Selatlhwa.
Kgotlhang related his story to the duo. Selatlhwa had to fetch water for him as he started to cry. The two reporters started working on Kgotlhang’s allegations. There was no documentary evidence but only his word.
Journalists are used to this. We hear all these wild stories almost everyday and sometimes we could tell the source is bluffing too early in the interview, but Kgotlhang was a different kind of a source, his narration of events and his alleged misdemeanors was intriguing and gripping.
When editors were briefed about the story they were rightly skeptical. They have seen mad men come and present falsehoods before. There was need for more information. The story needed to be subjected to intense scrutiny and verification. How do you do that when the source is claiming that he has no material evidence?
The burden was to establish the credibility of the source and the ‘story’ was pitched back to the reporters. The reporters worked on the story to establish Kgotlhang’s credibility. They went in search of the house that he claimed was a slaughterhouse where he executed two foreigners.
After days of investigations and travelling between Gaborone, Mogoditshane, Letlhakeng they crosschecking with psychiatrists, family and friends to make sure that the source was of sound medical state. After much groundwork, the editors were still not satisfied.
And it was end of the year, everyone focusing on a festive break - a time where people lose focus and could end with a mistake - in news business this could cost the newspaper millions on lawsuits and worse, its credibility.
The delay running the story worried Kgotlhang. He would later say the whole delay drove him into deeper depression. His worry was that we might have sold him out.
But he wasn’t giving anyone a hint that he was uncomfortable with the delay. He alleges that his handlers at the Directorate of Intelligence Services (DIS) told him that no one would believe him. He says he was starting to believe them, that no one was ready to believe his story.
During this waiting period, Kgotlhang alleges that his handlers paid him a visit to poke fun that no one believed him. They even ordered him to go back to Mmegi and change his story and say that he made the allegations under the influence of some cheap dagga.
Fast forward to 2016 and the story was revisited. Kgotlhang was called in once again to retell his story, this time around on camera and before the panel of editors.
He was happy with the video camera because he wanted to come out and needed to be seen and heard. “Are you a plant? Are you mentally stable? Have you been to a mental institution? Why do you want this story out? Can you be trusted? Are you lying?” these are some of the questions that were thrown at Kgotlhang. The self-proclaimed career criminal remained composed and despite the intense cross-examination he never changed his version of events. The conclusion was its either he is telling the truth or he is just a well-gifted liar.
For two months efforts to reach the DIS Director General Isaac Kgosi were unsuccessful. In December alone dozens of phone calls and SMSes were sent to his cell phone number but he remained mum. When he was finally reached a day before the story went to print, he was just dismissive, telling our reporters to get everything from Kgotlhang. He surprisingly also added that he has been ‘waiting for the story’ to be published.
Pius Mokgware had confirmed Kgotlhang’s allegations and even the company lawyer, Dick Bayford who at one point met and listened to Kgotlhang’s story, also gave it its thumps up saying his confessions were consistent with what he initially told them. And then we ran the story.
(Mmegi has not been able to independently verify some of the allegations raised by Kgotlhang)