Tribute to Lizo Zola Ngcongco

I had been barely two years at the ropes, when one morning, during tea, a startling announcement was made; “Lizo is back”.

We were clustered in Office 6, on the fourth floor of the Barclays Bank Building where the Prosecutions Department, of the Attorney General’s Chambers, was housed, before it moved to the grand offices of the Attorneys General’s Chambers Building, and then, to Khama Plaza, its final grave. It was custom then, for those that had no court attendances on a particular day, to meet in that office, where both tea, and wisdom were generously served. It was the perfect cradle for aspiring young prosecutors in the formative years of their careers.

The name Lizo, evoked that feeling, not unlike that felt when a young lawyer first stands alone, before a Judge. It is an experience one can never prepare for. You spend a whole night, quoting the Constitution to a mopstick. The name Lizo Ngcongco had been with me since High School. I had read it over and over again.

Editor's Comment
Mob justice isn't just

A young man suspected of breaking into a car was seized by residents, severely assaulted, and died in the hospital within an hour. We unreservedly condemn this mob justice. It is not a solution to crime, but a criminal offence that turns citizens into murderers.Residents are understandably angry about theft. The person who raised the alarm at 4am acted lawfully, and the neighbours who rushed to help showed community spirit. But what followed was...

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