20 Jul 2021

After days of outpouring grief, veteran journalist, Mr Koziba Batunkamile, was remembered in a sober funeral ceremony filled with dirge and personal tributes as he was laid to rest at Phomolong cemetery, Phakalane yesterday. 

Mr Batungamile’s demise on July 15 at the age of 57 following a short illness was met by an outburst of emotion across the media fraternity and the public at large. 

On any other day, thousands of mourners and well-wishers would have thronged the Batungamile’s residence to pay their last respect, but as COVID 19 protocols dictate, only a handful braved the morning chill as temperatures plummeted into single digits on the gloomy but memorable morning. 

Despite the curtailed list of attendees, Mr Batungamile’s larger-than-life character was summed up by his close friends and family in eulogies that took mourners along the footsteps of his lifetime. 

Deputy Permanent Secretary (Information and Broadcasting), Mr Oshinga Tsiang described the deceased as a hard worker who had passion for serving the nation. 

Mr Tsiang said as head of the Publications Unit, Mr Batungamile was instrumental in ensuring that DailyNews, content, design and layout were of great quality and aesthetically pleasing to the readers. 

“As the head of his unit, the buck always ended with him and he never shied away from owning the fault at hand, that was the Koziba I know,” he said. 

A former colleague to the deceased, Ms Kebareng Solomon pronounced Mr Batungamile as a team player who mellowed with age in the journalism industry. 

Having worked with Mr Batungamile from 1986, Ms Solomon vividly recapped the days in the life of the deceased from the his ‘cub reporting’ days till he masterminded the design and layout of a newspaper. Among the most moving tributes was delivered by Ms Florah Tapela, who spent most of the time nursing the deceased. 

A medical practitioner by profession, Ms Tapela, painted a downhearted picture of how stretched and overwhelmed the health sector is due to the pandemic. 

“We were turned down by most of the health facilities when in search of medical attention for the deceased as they all decried overflow of patients and only managed to secure admission at Princes Marina Referral Hospital at the eleventh hour,” said Ms Tapela. 

Frequently pausing to compose herself, Ms Tapela narrated the chronology of events from the time the deceased needed medical attention to the moment he took his last breath. 

The deceased’s first born daughter Lame Batungamile moved mourners as she reminisced about her father. 

“Daddy you were indeed an extraordinary human being and you will remain our guiding light, illuminating the path as we continue the long journey of life, it pains me that death has denied you the opportunity to walk me down the aisle or meet you grandchildren,” she said. 

As mourners reached the cemetery, a draught of sorrow momentarily filled the air as the casket was slowly lowered into the grave, making the end of Mr Batungamile’s well run journey even as a mournful but harmonious rendition of Sefapano ke boha ( On the Cross I behold) punctuated the air as mourners spontaneously lifted their voices unison. 

Family and friends comforted each other, as they paid their last homage to Mr Batungamile. 

Mr Batungamile is survived by his wife, three children, mother and six siblings. ends