The announcement by the water authority that there will be low pressure to no water at all immediately evokes memories of 2012 and the early part of this year when many homes went for weeks without water. Gaborone seemed to be the worst hit mainly because it is the capital city and has the largest population. This announcement evokes memories of some households in Mogoditshane who had to fetch water from streams. Within a few weeks it was back to the dark days of suffering for many households. While we should commend the water authority for warning households beforehand about the impending problem, we cannot ignore the fact that the bursting of pipes that deliver water to key areas seems to be the norm of late, and it does not look like this problem is going away any time soon. We can only hope that the water problem, coupled with continuous power cuts, will only last for a week, like the water authority has announced. Needless to say, we urge the affected residents to start stockpiling water for the hard times ahead, so that we do not have to go back to dirty streams to fetch water as happened before to some of our fellow citizens.
Sleep well lady Olebile
T
his week we mourn and remember the legacy of the second first lady, Lady Olebile Masire, who passed away at Milpark Hospital in Johannesburg on Saturday. While we mourn her loss, it is also time to reflect and honour her legacy for Botswana. As the first lady, there is no doubt the ever energetic and loving Mma Gaone has left us a lot to celebrate; in church, in the arts, in music, in recreation, in youth matters, in community projects, her legacy is written almost everywhere for us to tell her story and celebrate her works. Ga-mma-masire, a recreation centre that houses football pitches, tennis, netball, basketball, volleyball, a creche, as well as offices for the Botswana National Youth Council, remains one of the legacies to look at with fond memories and pride. Located in one of the economically disadvantaged localities of G-West, this centre's strategic importance cannot be over-emphasised. We thank you, Lady Olebile, mother of the nation.
