Mmegi

When empty stands greet athletics' defining moments

Empty stands: There were fewer spectators during the recent Orange Botswana Athletics Championships PIC: MORERI SEJAKGOMO
Empty stands: There were fewer spectators during the recent Orange Botswana Athletics Championships PIC: MORERI SEJAKGOMO

As Busang Collen Kebinatshipi's firm strides took him further away from the chasing pack and closer to a rare feat, there was eerie silence from the popular Panda Stand at the National Stadium. In fact, the stand was barren and therefore, voiceless. The only noise came from the grandstand. But the 9.89 seconds moment deserved more witnesses, argues Staff Writer MQONDISI DUBE

Inside the 25,000-seater facility, a historic moment was brewing on a Good Friday during the Orange Botswana Athletics National Championships. However, on the witness stand, there were a few local spectators.

One of Botswana's standout athletes, Kebinatshipi, was about to set the track alight. Shifting from his favoured 400m, which gifted him and the nation a 400m gold and world champion title during last year's World Championships, Kebinatshipi lined up in the 100m.

Editor's Comment
The State apparatus must be sanitised

When the State cannot rely on its own machinery to pursue suspected wrongdoing, repairing that machinery must become a national priority.The establishment of a Special Investigations and Asset Recovery Task Force may help government respond to the immediate challenge. However, Botswana cannot afford to leave the Directorate on Corruption and Economic Crime (DCEC) and the Directorate of Public Prosecutions (DPP) struggling whilst building...

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