19 Jul 2017

Contrary to common belief that there was no love lost between the late Sir Ketumile Masire and the late Kgosi Bathoen II of Bangwaketse, historian, Dr Jeff Ramsay has set the record straight.

He described their relationship as that of partners and patriots.

Dr Jeff Ramsay, also deputy permanent secretary in the Office of the President said during a public lecture at Kanye Records Centre recently that he was privileged to have known the two pioneer nationalists and described them as giants who co-existed.

He reconstructed that the two nation builders were fundamentally affected by the deaths of their fathers when still young.

The historian shared that Kgosi Bathoen was 10 years old when his father, Seepapitso III was assassinated by his own brother, Moeapitso, who subsequently became Kgosi at the age of 18.

Dr Ramsay said the two giants shared a lot of values, were  humble, easily accessible, loved history and were eloquent in Setswana.

He also told History lovers that they both loved archives and reading, had private libraries and preferred non-fictional books.

He said both were founders of Botswana Society and the National Museum.

The Records Centre in Kanye, Dr Ramsay said was a real monument to Kgosi Bathoen.

Likewise, he said Sir Ketumile’s father ,Mr Joni Masire died when he was at Tigerkloof Training Institute and was forced to become head of the family at the age of 21.

He also revealed that they both had an opportunity to go to university, but were denied by their misfortunes.

Dr Ramsay revealed that long before independence, Kgosi Bathoen was interested in nationalism and created symbols that included kgabo, kwena, nare, tlou, phuti, thakadu and tholo among others with a view to create a national flag and unite all tribes.

He said the idea was to have the flag represent all tribes, but individual tribes could still have their totems at their respective dikgotla. Still before Independence, he further revealed that Kgosi Bathoen had set aside September 30 as a protectorate Day and Kanye became the main centre for national celebrations.

He said Kgosi Bathoen with Kgosi Tshekedi Khama resisted pressure from the Boers to have Batswana recruited into the apartheid South African Armed Forces.

Dr Ramsay said Kgosi Bathoen also created a grain board, cattle buying scheme although he said some of the initiatives were not always progressive at the time.

At a personal level, Dr Ramsay shared that correspondences between Sir Ketumile and Kgosi Bathoen revealed that the former addressed the latter as father even before his own father died.

Dr Ramsay further shared that there was a time when Sir Ketumile had inhaled poison and fell sick, but Kgosi Bathoen sent for the late Mr Dingaan Mokaila in Morolong, who was at the time working for a pharmacist in Mafikeng to bring him medicine from Mafikeng.

Mr Mokaila, who was the father to the current Minister of Transport and Communications, Mr Kitso Mokaila heeded the call and Sir Ketumile, who at the time married his late wife, Lady Olebile Masire on his ‘death bed’, was subsequently healed.

Again he connected that Kgosi Bathoen travelled to Tigerkloof, South Africa to inform Sir Ketumile that his father was ill.

After the death of Sir Ketumile’s father, he said the late statesman and Kgosi Bathoen arranged for the former to complete his teacher’s certificate and he played a supportive role for Sir Ketumile to come back home and introduce secondary education in Kanye.

At some point he said he was recruited to teach for a higher pay in South Africa like his counterparts, the late Messrs Ben Thema and Archibald Mogwe, but turned down the offer.

It was while teaching in Kanye that Sir Ketumile, together with Kgosi Bathoen introduced a school feeding programme to avoid keeping children in class too long on empty stomachs or having to break for long intervals awaiting learners to come back after feeding from home.

Although they had differences, Dr Ramsay said the two leaders maintained themselves to the very end.

He said the differences were more like those of father and son not a love-hate- relationship as many would assume, ‘because there was no hatred between them’.

He said at the prime of his youth, Sir Ketumile used to attend Kgosi Bathoen’s kgotla meetings religiously and was among his leading youthful advisors.

He said they were both proud Bangwaketse and proud Batswana. Some of their differences stemmed from Sir Ketumile Masire’s explosive new farming technologies, extension of ploughing fields and exercising an independence of mind. Kgosi Bathoen became president of the Customary Court of Appeal when Sir Ketumile was the State President.

Dr Ramsay further recollected that the late first president, Sir Seretse Khama, who was also Kgosi, once said Sir Ketumile loved and respected the Bogosi institution more than him. Kanye resident and Lodubeng ward headman Kgosi Lewatle Kgosiyareng said both men built the nation through politics.

Although they had different political homes, they never allowed political views to cloud their judgment but pulled together towards a common end, nation building. Scores of Bangwaketse challenged Dr Ramsay to document the life and legacy of Kgosi Bathoen. They felt what was written about him paled in comparison to his contribution to the nation. BOPA