'Mining' is not a bad place to be

KEABETSWE NEWEL
Correspondent | Monday January 17, 2011 00:00

The trousers were ironed such that the pleat was so straight and sharp it could kill a fly. These were no ordinary clothes then. So expensive and of good quality were these clothes that those wearing them attracted so much respect from their kith and kin that none would even wish to touch them in case they left dirt on the immaculate and expensive attire.

Legend also says that the miners were among the very few who could afford expensive drinks such as Black Label beer whilst the other people drank traditional beer. They also showed off with expensive cigarettes.

The only other people in the village who could afford a modicum of luxury were the village teachers. During their visits to their home villages from the mines at the end of the year, these men brought radios and bicycles. Due to their financial clout, the miners were, in many instances, the breadwinners, not only for their nuclear families but the extended family. Back then, these were 'status' items.

Their possession of such luxury goods separated the miners not only from the ordinary villager but also from those who worked inside Botswana. One characteristic that identified them from the locals was their affinity for South African languages, especially Zulu, Afrikaans and Sesotho.

Because of the aura of success and uniqueness, the miners were a major attraction to the village girls. Even today the industry still commands a lot of respect. For instance, Debswana mining company remains one of the highest paying in the country. Because of the respect enjoyed by mine workers, some young men have been known to claim to be employees of Debswana in order to manipulate other people including girls. They would even don the mine uniform to look genuine.  

On average, mine workers in this country live more dignified lives.  Lentshaletse Molati (65) is a former employee at the Gold mines in South Africa where he worked from 1966 to 1967. He said that he worked only for a year and then returned back home where he was employed in Debswana mine in 1969.

Molati says that he enjoyed his life as a miner both in South Africa and here. 'Mining was good. Everything there was excellent considering the fact that we were also paid very generously,' he commented. The ex-miner revealed that during his times at Debswana mines money was not a problem. 'I earned a lot of money. Even today I am getting a good pension. One thing about working in the mines is that you earn respect especially from those people who know that you work in a mine, because automatically they would know that you are paid higher,' Molati said.

Keikantseng Motsamai worked at Debswana mines from 1981 to 2006. Like Molati, he reveals that he enjoyed working at the mines. Besides the good pay package he got, there were other benefits. 'Debswana enrolled me into different courses to further my skills, courses like health and safety, we were taught also of HIV/AIDS,' Motsamai said.

Safety according to him was highly considered in the mines. The health and lives of employees were given first priority; more so that he said the mine had its own hospital which according to him offered the best health services in the Boteti region, ensuring that its employees enjoy the best health services.

'Working as a miner earned me a lot of respect from my community, just as it did from back in the years at South African gold mines. For working in the mines, people treated me with respect and even today they still do,' he revealed, adding that the attention he got especially at home when he was still working was similar to the one given to those from the South African mines years ago.

Motsamai says that with his income from the mines, he could afford more than those working in other industries.

Another ex-miner, David Mpoloka spoke the same language. He said that he worked at Jwaneng mines from 1977 to 2004. Just as with other former miners, Mpoloka maintained that as a miner he had a financial advantage over workers in other industries.

'I worked as a Senior Security Officer and I earned so much respect from people who knew where I worked because they thought that I made a lot of money,' he said. Mpoloka says that before his unexpected retirement, he had a lot of plans which he knew he could finance because he was well paid issues he could be very wealthy. 'I managed to buy myself a vehicle and some cattle within a relatively short period of time. As we speak I am able to live off the pension money I get monthly.' he added