15 Jun 2017

Radio Botswana employee, Ms Kgomotso Mmoloki will be laid to rest this Saturday at her home village of Lecheng in the Tswapong North area after having celebrated her birthday two weeks prior to her passing on.

Having worked for the Department of Broadcasting Services (DBS) since 2006, Ms Mmoloki, a radio reporter, had just been transferred to Serowe from Kasane, having previously served in Selebi Phikwe when she met her untimely death.

In spite of her ailing health, especially during her final months in Chobe district prior to her transfer, she displayed a remarkable fighting spirit refusing to miss out on covering any district event.

The last session of the Chobe District full council was one such event that she covered throughout despite the obvious fact that she was no longer able to cope with walking even the shortest of distances without running out of breath.

She simply refused to give in to her illness and always insisted on being on time for assignments.

Radio Botswana general manager, Ms Keitirele Mathapi described Kgomotso as a true journalist at heart, never shying away from traversing rough terrains in pursuit of information.

“Her exceptional aptitude coupled with discipline saw Kgomotso being transferred to regions where she single handedly covered stories in vast regions  including Selebi Phikwe, Bobirwa, Kasane and Serowe. She was always willing to go an extra mile to ensure a job well done,” she stated.

Due to her inner strength, Ms Mathapi noted, Ms Mmoloki prevailed over her situation.

“Brave as she was, when I saw her on June 11, a day before she passed on, I could see that she had fought her battle well and the rest was now in God’s hands.”

Sadly on the early hours of Monday morning she was no more.

For her last born daughter who is sadly a toddler, this is perhaps the biggest loss.

The two were hardly separate and could be seen reporting for duty together on weekends covering football games, which Ms Mmoloki was passionate about.

She referred to the nearly three year-old as her best friend and it was easy to see why.

A best friend and colleague in the Department of Information Services based in Mahalapye, Ms Leungo Rakgati remembers Ms Mmoloki as a warm friend who was always by her side on personal and official missions.

Despite the fact that Ms Rakgati had worked and stayed longer in Chobe district, it was Ms Mmoloki  who challenged her to explore travel to neighbouring towns in neighbouring countries such as Livingstone in Zambia.

“One night we were stuck in Zambia after the border closed and while I panicked, Ms Mmoloki calmly suggested that we find a lodge to sleep in for the night and wait for the border to open in the morning,” she narrated.

Since this was a weekday, the two ladies had to head straight to the office wearing the same clothes they had worn the day before, ‘re le banyana ba maabane!’

“I always imagined we would grow old together and experience more good times together,” she shared adding “I loved her so much, I am sure our relationship seemed weird to people, but it was very meaningful to me.”

All Ms Rakgati holds on to now are memories of camping trips, birthday parties and outings.

She credits Ms Mmoloki for introducing her to sports reporting, especially in the area of football.

For those who worked closely with her in Chobe, she was unapologetic when it came to effective time management and organisation.

She hated late coming and would insist on getting to an event earlier than the starting time.

Similarly, she did not take kindly to disorganised events, which almost always tended to run behind schedule as was normally the case.

It was clear that she believed in results and expected that from everyone else around her.

She was very instrumental in ensuring that Information and Broadcasting services departments raised funds and donated educational materials to children with disability in Kachikau Primary School in 2013.

She will be remembered as a hardworking and passionate radio journalist who contributed a lot in reporting sports related activities in Chobe district.

She was also a supporter of local football teams in the area. ENDS