BROKEN FAMILY Mother, ngwetsi, siblings not speaking because of a tree
The Lejage family members in Manyana at Powane ward are currently embroiled in a dispute over a mokgalo tree situated in their mother’s yard. One of the sons, Lejage Lejage, living in a yard adjacent to his mother’s, claims that the tree’s roots from across the fence are causing cracks in the walls of his house as the tree is just three meters from the wall of his house.
As a result of this, Lejaga is not on speaking terms with his mother, 87-year-old Boitumelo Lejage, as well as his siblings in her mother’s yard and another brother who lives a few meters further.
Marea Lejage, the wife to the aggrieved son, along with her children are neither on speaking terms with their mother in law and grandmother, believing too that the tree in the yard where Lejage grew up was causing damage to their house.
The family has been embroiled in this dispute over the mokgalo tree for 19 years now, continuously arguing about its impact. Lejage and his wife Marea previously took the issue to court, seeking compensation for damages from his elderly mother, but a resolution is yet to be reached.
Speaking to The Midweek Sun, Lejage confirmed he has not been on speaking terms with his mother due to long-standing complaints about the tree that the mother and siblings refuse to cut off. His wife’s expression of concern to the mother in law and her husband’s siblings resulted in her being resented by her in-laws.
“Now they want me to chase away my wife, who gave me eight kids. Mosadi ke wame, ga se wa ga ope,” he said, adding that the tree’s leaves now extend to the top of his roof, further causing disturbing noises in the evening.
“My younger brother passed away some time ago, and despite the funeral being just next door, my family and I could not attend.
I stood at the fence, watching my brother being buried across. I could not bring myself
to step foot inside my mother’s yard due to the ongoing family dispute,” he lamented.
Lejage further revealed that in the past one of his siblings previously gave him watermelons to eat, but was shocked when his ducks instantly died after he had decided to feed them all the watermelons.
Lejage’s wife added that the tree has even sparked physical fights among her husband’s siblings, traumatising her children in the process, leading them to perform badly and repeat grades at school. Police are often called to intervene.
“All we ask of them is to agree to remove the mokgalo tree. It has encroached into our yard, hindering our freedom to move along the side of the house. We are constantly terrorised by snakes, and the tree itself attracts mosquitoes. I have no peace within my own yard,” expressed Marea.
Lejage’s brother, Kgatitswe Mokokwe, who lives farther away from the two yards, insisted that there was nothing wrong with the mokgalo tree in their mother’s yard, saying it has long been used for shade even by the brother when growing up.
“Lejage may be having personal issues he is not talking about. We have no intention of removing the mokgalo tree.
If he is concerned about the roots damaging his house, he should dig alongside his house in his yard and cut any roots he sees crossing over,” stated Mokokwe. Despite being siblings, the two remain at odds and are unwilling to reconcile their differences.
The mother, Boitumelo Lejage told The Midweek Sun that she has even exhausted her old-age pension funds attending court cases where her elder son, Lejage Lejage, sought compensation for damages caused by the mokgalo tree roots.
“I did not plant the tree, it just grew there. Even Lejage Lejage grew up as a small boy sitting under the same tree.
We have no other tree for shade in the yard. I have urged them to come to a decision regarding the tree. I am old and not physically capable of removing it,” said the elderly woman.