16 Apr 2018

President Mokgweetsi Masisi on April 15 commended the Sikh Council of Botswana for celebrating Botswana’s diversity not just in colour, splendor but also in manner of worship which contributes to  the country’s peace and tranquility.

President Masisi said  tolerance and diversity were part of  Botswana’s foundations which had proved and confirmed that Botswana was a welcoming country and expressed gratitude to the Sikh, those who are citizens and those who have chosen Botswana as a home away from home.

The President was speaking at the celebration of the Vaisakhi day which is a foundation day of the Sikhism religion in Botswana on April 15.

He urged the Sikh to be truthful and faithful to their religion and to live in peace and harmony with other nationals.

He said  he had also observed that people who followed the Sikh religion were completely committed to the perfection of their religion in the sense that they did it with vigor to achieve intended results.

“It’s no surprise that you tend to do well. I’m reliably informed that the Sikh started arriving here in 1970’s and I can recall some of the very first because I did live in this city.

They persevered and were committed to the dictates and believes even without a temple at that time,” he said.

Moreover, the President said that  the Sikh’s success was also measured by the number of temples against their  population in Gaborone and were probably among the most successful in the world.  He observed that they have internalised themselves very quickly, also describing them as law abiding and an organised community.

“I will attempt to educate myself a lot more than I do know about the Sikhism religion  not so much from the reading but from very curious observation of attributes like sense of focus, fortitude, persistence, resilience and success which are among the things that define the Sikh,”  he said. He assured the Sikh that like all other religions, they  were protected by the constitution of  Botswana.

On other issues, President Masisi commended the Sikh for offering free medical services, freely dispensing drugs to any and all those who seek to use the porter camp where medical services are offered.

The Sikh also gave Mr Masisi a cheque worth P51 000 to be handed to Ipelego Trust.   

Meanwhile the Sikh Council chairperson, Ajit Singh Ahuja said President Masisi has given them joy and encouragement, saying the event was celebrated in India every year as a major event and all over the world.

He said the Sikh religion was inclusive and knows no geographical boundary of colour since there was well distributed international Sikhs community of about 30 million Sikh around the world who have settled outside its land of origin, Ananadpur Sahib in India. He said the Sikh were found in United States, Canada, Africa, Britain, Australia and predominantly in Kenya, South Africa and  Botswana.

Mr Ahuja said that there were 40 families of Sikhs in Botswana saying some had settled in Botswana for  40 years.  

“Sikh are very proud of their culture and that is why they follow the norms set by Guru Gobin Singh, the tenth master of the Sikh who founded this unique religion,” he said.   

He said majority of the Sikh in Botswana were in business and have created employment for a lot of Batswana.

“We are grateful to the government of Botswana for the open door policy to support entrepreneurs to develop and implement their expertise for the benefit of the people of Botswana,” said Ahuja. ENDS