Masire was workaholic, amiable, caring

FORMER president of Botswana Dr Festus Mogae, pictured, has described his predecessor Sir Ketumile Masire as a workaholic, an avid reader and humorous.

Speaking at the memorial service for the late Masire yesterday, Mogae said Masire engaged as many stakeholders as possible in his decision-making process.

“He sought the views of civil servants and cabinet members before making a decision, and would defer a decision by rhetorically saying

“A ga rea e bua?”, meaning ‘Didn’t we dwell on the matter?’.

“He was a workaholic, an avid reader who would read at 3am, and would ring you at 3 in the morning to seek your input.”

Former vice-president of Botswana Dr Ponatshego Kedikilwe (2011-2014) described Masire as a man who loved education. After graduating from Tiger Kloof School in South Africa, Masire returned to Botswana to serve the government at a time when Batswana were getting their university education at the University of Botswana, Lesotho and Swaziland. The university was operating from Lesotho. “Masire was at the forefront of the construction of the University of Botswana through a campaign called ‘Motho le motho kgomo’, which means that each individual should contribute a cow to raise funds for the project. “He appealed to the nation to contribute anything to build the institution. The response was overwhelming,” Kedikilwe said. Masire’s eldest daughter, Gaone, was called to the podium to receive his university chancellor robe in remembrance of her father’s contribution to an educated and informed nation.