31 Aug 2017

Hardly two months after the nation mourned the death of the country’s second president, another dark cloud has befell the country as another  member of the early cabinet has passed on.

Mr Kebatlamang Morake will be laid to rest on Sunday (September 3) at his home village Tonota.

Former Tonota MP, Mr Pono Moatlhodi has fond memories of the late Morake.

Mr Moatlhodi says he benefited a lot from Mr Morake while he was the MP for Mmadinare and later that of Selibe Phikwe following the delimitation commission decision to separate the two areas from each other.

He describes how he immensely benefited politically from Mr Morake as they addressed rallies together with the likes of Mr Albert Paki, the late Mr Walter Sebina and Mr Limit Radinonyane.

The former Tonota legislator became energetic and even raised his voice when he narrated how he and Mr Morake were invited as guest speakers at a political rally to campaign for the late Mr Archie Mogwe during a bye-election that followed the crowning of the Late Kgosi Seepapitso as a member of Ntlo ya Dikgosi.

Mr Moatlhodi says although Mr Mogwe did not win the bye-election there were no regrets as KP’s team made an impact in converting Kanye residents into democrats as later in 1989 Mr Mogwe won with a margin of over 1 000.

Tonota MP and also Minister of Youth Empowerment, Sport and Culture Development, Mr Thapelo Olopeng says the death of Mr Morake is a loss to the community of Tonota, the BDP and the government because as one of the former longest serving members of the cabinet he could offer advice.

Mr Olopeng recollects that Mr Morake has mammoth wisdom that he shared with everybody including public officers.
“Above all Mr Morake was BDP loyalist and when I had intention to contest Bulela Ditswe I approached him for advice,” he says.

He elaborates that Mr Morake gave the wisdom that as a politician he should know the voters’ expectations, what it means to contest elections and advised him to guard against making empty promises to the voters.

After winning Bulela Ditswe I consulted him frequently and I realised that he was a genuine politician who was also well informed,” he says.

Mr Olopeng says he was impressed when during one of his visits to Mr Morake he gave him the Botswana National Front pamphlet number 1 and he was also amazed by Mr Morake’s sharp memory of events of how the national unfolded from 1966 to date.   

What Mr Olopeng will also miss in Mr Morake is his poetic skills adding he always started his presantations with a poem.

For the retired Kgosi Ramosinyi Radipitse, Mr Morake was not only his age mate and a retired minister but a think tank who advised him on a number of issues that affected Bakhurutshe.

He says Mr Morake was an intelligent individual who worked with all people across the social divides equally and “I still remember how he will say “ditlhabololo ke shololovia phuka ya balume” meaning developments never cease to need attention because as you implement them something else comes out of them that also needs attention.”

Kgosi Radipitse says he loved Mr Morake for his eloquence in the Setswana language and he would sometimes consult him for advice on issues of morafe and the kgotla system.

Kgosi Radipitse says during his time as Tonota Kgosi he made a declaration that Mr Morake should always be seated next to him during kgotla meetings as a way of honouring him.

Mr Morake who passed away on August 29 at Nyangabgwe Referral Hospital after a long illness was born on November 21 1930.

He is a former Mmadinare and Selibe Phikwe MP, a former longest Minister of Education who at some point acted as a President during the late Sir Ketumile Masire’s presidential tenure.

Mr Morake was the first BDP executive secretary who was also responsible for writing articles for BDP’s Therisanyo newspaper.

Prior to his political career Mr Morake was a teacher and a school head in Tonota.

He is survived by five children. ENDS