I have had to change the tone of this article after it was announced the Botswana National Front (BNF) has, after all the bickering, finally agreed to let former African National Congress Youth League (ANC YL) President Julius ‘Juju Boy’ Malema to come to Botswana and do what he does best, say something. I was very upset that some people were refusing to have Malema come here.
Some even swore he would only come here post their demise. I so much want Malema to come to Botswana that I almost became heartless and wished death on those who said Malema would only come here over their ‘dead bodies’. I mean, if you want something so badly and then someone declares that you can only have that thing “over my dead body” then it is excusable to pray for that person to indeed become a ‘dead body’ so as to make way for, in this instance, Malema. I like Julius Malema. I like his confidence. I admire his bravery. Don’t be fooled, everyone likes Julius Malema and that is why everyone listens when Malema speaks. Those who pretend not to like him are probably the ones who wish they were Julius Malema or are pained by his forthrightness. I do not understand why someone would claim to love Nelson Mandela and go on to hate Julius Malema when it is apparent Mandela likes people in the mould of Malema. Julius Malema is free spirited and independent minded. He is never shy to speak his mind even where it hurts some people. Nelson Mandela admires such people. Mandela once said, “I like friends who have independent minds because they tend to make you see problems from all angles”. Now if Mandela can show appreciation for such people as Malema, who in their right minds can dispute people like Malema are to be cherished, appreciated and indeed listened to? I was even planning to extend a personal invitation to Malema in the event the BNF pulled out the middle finger in his direction.
You cannot just dismiss Malema. Malema is big, in any language, as my friend Robbie Rob would say. You may not agree with, and to most of his statements but that doesn’t make him a ‘nobody’. They may have auctioned his property but the truth is, his brains didn’t go under the hammer. They may have expelled him from the ANC but his sentiments and thoughts on national issues remain valid even as they rattle the leadership. Yes, there are times when he speaks gibberish but which politician has never said anything stupid? How do you dismiss Malema when he has been voted one of the most influential Africans? When Malema speaks, the whole world listens. Whether he speaks kak or not is neither here nor there. The fact is, everyone wants to know what Julius has to say. The world is aware of Malema more than it is with our political leaders here and even in his country.
That you do not agree with what Malema says doesn’t make his statements worthless. Are we going to selectively invite people at the pleasure of our leaders? We have just hosted the Governor General of Canada, His Excellency the Right Honorable (what a title) David Johnson and I bet no one, including Batswana, care much about why he came here and what he had to say while he was here. It is so because what he said during his visit here is obvious and predictable. Even though he may be aware of some of the things that are not going well in our country, Johnson, because he doesn’t have a free mind like Malema, would not point out the pimples in our so-called democracy. We should invite people like Malema who will not shy away from praising us where we deserve it and will never beat about the bush when it comes to criticizing us where he feels we are losing it. Malema praised us for the way we manage our mineral resources and our leaders smiled like Cheshire cats at the compliment but hypocritical of them, they play hate on Malema when he questions our democratic credentials.
To show just how much Malema is big and important, government is going to deploy security agents to all the places he will touch base with when he lands here for the BNF Youth League event. Malema can not walk our streets without being recognized by people and this goes to show how ‘big’ Malema is. I can assure you that had the Canadian Governor took a walk along the western by-pass highway, we would have all mistook him for just one of the many white guys living among us here in Gaborone but the same cannot apply for Malema because he is more popular here than even some of our MP’s who never utter a word on national issues. I applaud the BNF Youth League for inviting Malema to our country. It is important that we hear from Malema after he got into all his current problems because of our country.
I salute the BNF youth who found it proper to invite Malema to their congress because it was through his invitation to them at the ANC Youth League congress that he ended up saying things about Botswana that landed him in hot soup. Malema’s invitation stands to gauge President Khama’s tolerance. Khama has gone on record labeling Malema as ill-mannered and through Malema’s arrival here, we will see whether Khama takes Botswana as his house where he can reserve the right of entrance for some people, especially people like Malema who he clearly does not fancy. We are just waiting to see if security agents will harass Malema. It’s too early to judge Khama’s acceptance of Malema until he arrives here. What I find absurd is, the people who are fighting against Malema’s invitation is the very people who should be drawing inspiration from him. Our political youth leagues’s leaders should learn from Malema that fighting for what you truly believe in can make you a hero despite the repercussions that may come with going against your political elders. They may impoverish Malema and reverse all his material gains but they will never take away his guts and heart. I await for Malema’s arrival and hope he won’t be intimidated to speak his mind, as he always does.
