Young and gifted poet, Mpati promotes Ikalanga language

Gasebalwe Seretse
Correspondent | Friday October 7, 2011 00:00

 

Bakati pa bakati guguru baka nwana aliMbumba waka zwi bumbaNswazwi ya kabe ili mbumba nge gaswaI lo hinyoka gulu maenda nge th'uziNlume kwayo uno koshola la gut'hu lika wonaUno tshimuta tari ika dadamulaNdo dwa tshambilidzwa ko yilaManyekhwa ntupo.

When one listens to the CD of the poet reciting, one would be tempted to think Mpati is a giant of a man and probably somebody old, which is not true.  His voice is so deep and captivating that even those who do not understand the Ikalanga language are easily drawn to it.  The young poet told Arts & Culture in an interview that he is determined to use his talent to promote the Ikalanga language and culture, which he fears is not being given enough exposure.

'Ikalanga is my mother-tongue and I am always proud of it.  I want to promote it and preserve it,' he asserted.Needless to say, the Nswazwi portrayed in the poem is a hero to the young man and he is not apologetic about that.  According to Mpati, the Kalanga leader was a hero who according to him was a formidable person who stood up to the late Bangwato regent, Tshekedi Khama whom he says did not treat his people well.

The 30-year-old poet says that despite adversity, Nswazwi remained a powerful and wise leader and at one point told his detractors (including some Kalangas) who were celebrating his fall, 'Bugwele gwe gunda go zhila manyuni' meaning the same sickness that afflicts the owl will visit the other birds one day.

Like his hero, Mpati was a laughing stock when he did his primary school education in the village of Mahalapye, which is predominantly Tswana speaking.  He says that he unlike other children was not free to express himself because whenever he tried to do that, they would burst out laughing because of his accent.'The more the other kids did that to me, the more I felt that I needed to be proud of my m

other-tongue,' he said adding that while he was forced to speak in Setswana while at school, at home he always spoke to his family in Ikalanga.  It is clear that he suckled the richness of his mother-tongue from his elders because his poems are laden with Ikalanga parts of speech.

The poet said that as he grew up, he was encouraged to see people like Mzwakhe Mbuli and Jabu Khanyile who were happy and proud to express themselves in their native tongues.  He particularly loved Mbuli because he was also a poet like him and he thought he could emulate him.

Closer to home, he has been inspired by legendary poets, Ponatshego Mokane and Albert Malikongwa although he described the former as the more inspirational one.

In 1997, Mpati started to take himself seriously as a poet and wrote his poems mostly in English.  The following year, he became confident enough to want to perform in English.

'I could tell from the way people reacted to my recitations that they were pleased with my offering so I gained confidence on stage,' he said adding that he started becoming popular and was always invited to perform at events while he was doing his secondary education still in the village of Mahalapye.

In 2006, after seeing that he was doing quite well as a performing artist, he decided to start reciting in Ikalanga and that is when his career as a poet started taking off.  Today, the young poet has recited poems in honour of dignitaries such as former president, Festus Mogae, cabinet minister Johnny Swartz, the late and former cabinet minister, Baledzi Gaolathe and legislator, Pono Moathodi.  Mpati has also been invited by political parties to perform at their events.

Apart from the John Nswazwi poem that is close to his heart, Arts & Culture had an opportunity to listen to his well-crafted poem on the youngest political party in the country, the Botswana Movement for Democracy (BMD).Although some of the subjects of his poems might not be able to understand Ikalanga, he has made it a point that he always recites in the language.

The artist asserts that ever since performing at the Domboshaba Festival, which seeks to promote the Ikalanga culture and language he has been a permanent fixture at the annual event. He is slated to perform at the forthcoming event at Domboshaba on October 1.

At long last, whenever the young poet stands up to speak, people stop and listen.  It is clear that he is a long way from the boy who was the laughing stock of his schooling days in Mahalapye and there is no doubt that he is the one who is having the last laugh.

While today many might see the young man as just a poet, it is clear that he is also a cultural activist who wants to see his mother-tongue being promoted at all cost and to be taught at school.

'It is not fair to be forced to learn a language that you do not relate that much to.  Everyone must be taught in their mother-tongue, a language which they are likely to understand better,' he says matter-of-factly.

There is no doubt that if Mpati, who works as an electrician for a Chinese company based in Botswana, remains one of the few true traditional poets in the country.  He has also most certainly taken the baton from Ikalanga cultural activist, Malikongwa who recently passed on.  One can only hope that the young man can be given exposure in programmes such as Dipina le Maboko on the national radio station, RB1.