Government, Bakgatla negotiations welcome

Mmegi Editor | Wednesday April 27, 2016 10:38

The meeting discussed many issues surrounding the de-recognition of Kgosi Kgafela Kgafela II who is on a self-imposed exile in South Africa. They also discussed Kgosi Bana Sekai Linchwe’s reinstatement as the interim chief of the tribe. Tsogwane also told Bakgatla that as government they could not argue forever about Kgosi Linchwe but to reinstate him to his previous position.

The problem, he said, is the criminal charges faced by Kgafela and Linchwe. The government awaits their criminal case to finish and allow Linchwe back at the kgotla. The minister also said the government would also re-recognise Kgafela as the paramount chief of Bakgatla. We learnt that President Ian Khama and Kgafela are in constant touch about these issues. In fact Tsogwane revealed that the exiled Kgafela had once sent Kgosi Leruo Molotlehi of Bafokeng in South Africa to meet with Khama over the Kgafela issue.

The Bakgatla supremo had written demands in his letter, which Tsogwane said were confidential and could not be revealed to the morafe. It is a welcome development that Khama is ready to welcome Kgafela back. The stalemate between Bakgatla and the government was taking forever and had the potential to retard the development of Kgatleng District.

We had been advocating for years that the two sides should resolve the conflict urgently for the sake of the people in Kgatleng. When elephants fight, it is the grass that suffers. In this case, the people were bound to suffer the consequences of this unresolved conflict. In fact, the differences between the two sides were too minor to have dragged for years.

Batswana should learn forgiveness. One wise person once said mistakes are always forgivable, if one has the courage to admit them. We all agree that both parties made mistakes but were not ready to admit it. Bakgatla sided with their chiefs in fracas while the government wanted to demonstrate its powers over Bakgatla and other tribes. Nelson Mandela and other liberation struggle heroes set a good example by forgiving their tormentors. The  Botswana government and Bakgatla should follow suit.

Today's Thought

'We must develop and maintain the capacity to forgive. He who is devoid of the power to forgive is devoid of the power to love. There is some good in the worst of us and some evil in the best of us. When we discover this, we are less prone to hate our enemies.'

- Martin Luther King Jr.