No song has divided public opinion in Botswana like Shumba Ratshega’s Loso lwa monnamogolo. There are those who strongly feel that the song is grossly inappropriate since it talks about having sex with one’s grandmother following the death of the grandfather ÔÇô twisted images of Oedipus flash my mind. Blind Oedipus and blind Teresias all in the game of the gods ÔÇô Oedipus doubly blind ÔÇô blind even with eyes and blind with his eyes removed. Teresias seeing though blind and in a life’s quest to bring sight to the seeing Oedipus and instead bringing only physical blindness to one who was spiritually blind and not spiritually sighted. The critics point to one of the most shocking lines in the song: “Loso la monnamogolo le mpolokile, loso la monna yole le mpereketse…” The shock emanates from the palpable celebration of another person’s demise. The line loosely translates into:
“The old man’s death has benefitted me (lit: saved me), the death of that old has worked in my favour.” It is taboo to celebrate one’s death, even the death of one’s enemies. How much more disgusting then, therefore is the idea that an old man’s death ÔÇô one who is a symbol of respectability and traditional wisdom ÔÇô could be considered a blessing, lest one who celebrates such death is corrupt and rotten to the core? They therefore argue that Ratshega’s song has exceeded the boundaries of decorum. It has fractured the Tswana morals and offended ideals that the society holds so dearly. In the past some Tswana songs used to demonstrated tribal intolerances, some even suggest sexual innuendoes between a younger man and an older woman. Consider one of George Swabi’s song where he says Ba gammaNgwato mpatelang mosadi e seng serathana ka ke ka se kgore, mosadi yo motona o a boloka, a beye motsena a beye bogobe. However we must not mistake Swabi’s reference to an older woman to be referring to a sugar mummy. Indeed he may be referring to a mature woman, though older than him, doesn’t qualify for the title sugar mummy.
Shumba’s sexual innuendoes are narrated through a journey to Mahalapye. He tells the tales of unfamiliarity with an older woman: Ka re ka kgweetsa nkuku, le ha ke ne ke sa itse. Ke sa tlwaela koloi ya gagwe, gore e chencha jang Ka heta Dibetse, ka kgweetsa nkuku. This is largely done though multiple self-praise through the song where the personna receives numerous compliments from the said nkuku: ka kgweetsa nkuku A re ngwanaka, tota o a nkgweetsa.
The persona in the song then proceeds to refer to the number of sexual rounds with the aid bullet tablets ÔÇô supposedly responsible for increasing one’s libido: Kante ga re itse sepe, ga re tsena ha Mahalapye Ka dikologa circle, ka dikologa la bobedi A re iyoo iyoo, are iyoo ngwanaangwanaka?Tota wa nkgweetsa, o gaisa ramogoloago Ka chencha leotwana, ke se na le lengwe Ka tshwara tsala yame, tsala yame Bullete… A ntlela ka maotwana, a le mararo.
It is the reference to the old lady’s screams during intercourse and her reference to him as ngwanaangwanaka “my grandson” and the claim that he is better than the deceased old man that many have found the song to be most distasteful. He claims that even when he tried to stop his romping the grandmother begged her not to stop: Fa ke re ke a ema, a re nnya nkgweetsa & Ka re ke boa ko Serowe, a re nnya ngwanaka A re hetele ko pele, tota w nkgotsohatsa.
Shumba proceeds probably more than many folk musicians before him to explain in detail about the sexual activity between him and nkuku. Ka re tshwara ha, Nkuku a Tshwara ha, Ka re leba kwa, Nkuku a leba Batho ka kgweetsa Nkuku, gareng ga masigo Re Kgaogana ko Maun, a sa batle go mpuisa Le nna ke lapile, tota ke sa mmatle Ke thusitse Nkuku, a mpha dibeche A re ngwanaka, o phala ramogolago Le nna Ke a dumela, ee ke kgweeditse Nkuku, A neng a huhula, A nwa metsi kgapetsa kgapetsa, A ikakatela ka nna, A utlwa phologolo!
There are those who love the song Loso lwa monnamogolo. They argue that it is probably one of the finest songs to come from Botswana in a long time. They argue that the song like the classical Tswana songs uses great imagery. It uses the motif of the journey to represent sexual intercourse between a young man and his sugar mummy and not about a grandson and a grandmother. Instead of talking explicitly about sex it uses the expression go kgweetsa to drive, which is in harmony with the image of the journey. This they argue is an example of Ratshega’s brilliance. Further they argue that this brilliance has been affirmed by Loso monnamogolo scooping BOMU’s song of the year award. Their further support for Ratshega’s song is that pina ya Setswana ga e na bosekelo (the Setswana song is beyond reproach). Even if it were obscene there is an accepted position amongst the Tswana that the Setswana song is beyond reproach. The song therefore is seen as a criticism of modern relations between the older woman and a younger man. What about the death of the old man which appears to be celebrated by the song? The defendants of the song argue that the imagery has been missed yet again. The song is not about death: it is about impotence and relationship breakups between the older woman and previous older lovers.
Who is blind is it Oedipus or Teresias? You be the judge.
