16 Jul 2026

Government has initiated a robust plan to ensure healing and psycho-social support for families that lost their loved ones in a bus accident at Mamatlakala bridge in South Africa.

Chief Social and Community Development Officer, Ms Masego Motsewakgosi said the plan was part of the National Healing, Remembrance and Closure Programme, noting that social workers had already started with assessing and profiling families and individuals to pave way for programmes targeted at their healing.

She said noted that two years down the line since the bus tragedy that claimed the lives of 45 Batswana who were on an Easter Holiday pilgrimage, they have realised that some families had not found healing and closure.

“It came to light during assessment that after the burial of Mmamatlakala victims, service rendered by social workers to the families was disengaged prematurely as there were signs of challenges that have mounted over time,” she said.

 Ms Motsewakgosi also said social workers were preparing families for the Tombstone Unveiling and Memorial Monument billed for Molepolole, tomorrow as it was meant to offer closure. 

She said the initial stages of the assessment and profiling had revealed that indeed the affected families were facing a mirage of challenges, seeking immediate attention.

“It was clear that the families were not in good shape as some have not healed as expected. As the First Lady has appealed, it is necessary to offer them healing, as some of the conflicts in the families emanates from lack of support and proper counselling,” she said.

She said even though grief cannot be avoided, it was important for the bereaved to get the necessary support and move forward, despite the loss.

Ms Motsewakgosi said the plan to ensure healing was in four phases and included assessment and profiling of the families in terms of the needs in psycho-social support, followed by instigating measures to resolved the raised concerns. “The programme will have the post unveiling stage, which will run for six months. We are currently visiting families and attending to individual members, using a toll designed to gauge grief. What is gathered through this tool will assist in the analysis stage, as individual issues will be addressed as per their level, family conflictswill also be resolved,”shesaid.

Ms Motsewakgosi said at some point, group counselling would be considered for those with similar issues, as the platform would make them understand that they were not suffering in isolation and there was room for healing. 

She said the healing process would also engage a referral system for further management of cases, noting that healing was a process and did not have a defined time frame, as it depend how one reacts, therefore some were unlikely not the heal within the set six months post unveiling. ENDS