WebechuAna festival to sensitise youth on history
Nnasaretha Kgamanyane | Thursday September 28, 2017 09:37
The event themed Moo Reyang Koo ReTswang will be held for the fourth year on Friday as a pre-Independence celebration on September 29, 2017 at My Destiny Gardens in Serowe. One of the event organisers, Phaf Phafana said they wanted to sensitise youth on who they were as a country.
“Just like our theme states, we want our youth to know where we are from and where we are going, but in an entertainment way. This concept came on after realising that there is a serious lack or decline of celebration on Independence Day amongst our youth. We realised that unlike adults who are always keen to celebrate independence, our youth does not see the significance of the day,” he said.
Furthermore, Phafana said WebechuAna strives to adopt a youth-friendly style. “Most of the youth are not knowledgeable of history or their background. A nation without the past is a lost nation. If we don’t know our past we are lost. Some of the youth don’t know that Mafikeng used to be part of Botswana. We are here to fill the gap in the system,” he confidently said.
He said it was important not to blame government, but that it was up to the nation to fill the gap in the system by empowering young people on knowledge of the country’s history. Phafana, however, pointed out that they needed the government to assist and appreciate their initiative. He said the President’s Day competition winners must be made part of that music fest.
He also added that the event had attracted tourism and brought international artists on board. He said previously, they had artists from Germany, France and a couple of artists from South Africa.
“This year we brought Leungo Pitse on board because he is popular on local TV and Amo Chide known as Reneiloe in the Rhythm City soapie. This year, we decided to re-energies the event.
We brought Shimza from SA, the female Motswako artist known as the first lady, Fifi Cooper, Trademark and some of the renowned local artists and DJs in the likes of ATI, Latimmy and Guyvos, Wizards, Girly-O-Dibody, aManandos, Chef Gustos, DJ Lady Dee from Maseru, DJ Phoubouy, DJ Khans and many more”.
Phafana said there would be a checkpoint a kilometre away from the venue to avoid traffic congestion and eliminate the culture of people crowding the entrance.
“We want to control the unruly culture of illegal trading or vending outside the venue. We want to ensure right of admission.
Tickets can be found in Serowe, Mahalapye, Palapye and Liquaramas. We also have accommodation packages by Honeymoon Lodge Serowe at P550 inclusive of a free English breakfast, free WiFi and a pool,” he said. He added that United Security has sponsored safety and security, and Generators Botswana sponsored with power and lighting to ensure that they would not have power cuts.
Other sponsors include Native Outdoor, Morobosi, Primedia, Bobonong Films Productions, Kgalagadi Breweries Limited with refreshments, Maeno, Sings and others. Tickets are sold at P100 early bird and P150 at the gate. Cooler boxes are allowed free entry before 7pm and the event starts at 4pm till the next day.