Bangwato ready for Khama's monumental farewell
Koketso Kgoboge | Friday March 23, 2018 16:50
Preparations for the mother of all farewells are in earnest in the Ga-Mmangwato capital.
The Central District Council (CDC), district commissioner, Berenice Berman-Mosime, who chairs the village local organising committee said anticipation for the event is high in Serowe as it is across the country.
“For us it is two events in one,” Berman-Mosime said.
“We are bidding our President goodbye and at the same time we will be welcoming our paramount chief. It is a special event for Bangwato.”
She said the community is eager and are working hard to finalise preparations of the event. She said the Bangwato have swept the village clean and the national flag is already flying in many poles across the village. Berman-Mosime said they are expecting masses of people to grace the occasion.
They are expecting top government officials including Dikgosi from across the country, diplomats, politicians and many more at the monumental event.
“It is a collosal occasion. We are ready for the masses that will grace this occasion, the community is excited, and we will ensure the occasion is second to none.”
“We are working around the clock and we expect major preparations to be done by Sunday, and Monday we are doing touch ups. We expect people to have arrived and seated at the main kgotla as early as 7am and our event is scheduled to take off at 8am.”
Berman-Mosime could not reveal the gifts they have prepared for the outgoing President.
“That is a surprise for the President. We are lucky to have seen all the gifts the President has received, we have ours ready but we don’t want to reveal anything, the event will be live on Btv for all to witness,” she said.
In his national farewell tour that began in Moshupa in December last year and has been to the 57 constituencies in all the four corners of the country, Khama has been flooded with gifts.
The gifts he has received by far include hundreds of thousands of Pula in cash, more than 500 cattle, two land cruisers, hundreds of goats and sheep, zebras, horses, Donkeys, chickens, farming machinery and materials, a pistol and many more.
Khama’s 10 years term in the first office elapses at the end of the month and he will be handing over the baton to the current Vice President Mokgweetsi Masisi.