allAfrica.com: Botswana: Ko Folateng Revisted - Noise Pollution, Beer And Beautiful Women On Standby (Page 1 of 1)

Botswana: Ko Folateng Revisted - Noise Pollution, Beer And Beautiful Women On Standby

After a rather drab Easter weekend, street wise Monitor Correspondent, Lekopanye Mooketsi decided to raid some of his old haunts.

The destination was 'ko folateng' (the flat), a double-storey Chibuku outlet in Bontleng where he knocked out a few pints with the boys and engaged in township lingo.

But I did not indulge in the zol (marijuana), which was part of the menu and readily available. The mixture of Shake-Shake and this other stuff can be quite lethal with disastrous consequences.

My intention to visit this joint, which is owned by the Gaborone City Council, was to write an article. Ko folateng, as it is popularly called, used to be one of the social places to visit in Gaborone during the old days when we were still young. This was the place where radio personalities like the late Phillip "Mokgankgara" Mosotle and other socialites of that time used to hang around. Police detectives and gangsters patronised the beer garden. This was the kind of place where people used to discuss current affairs and other pertinent issues.

But the beer garden was closed for quite some time. However, the council has since leased it to Gaborone businessman, Tebogo Sekgoma. When I arrived at the flat, it was drizzling but the old structures were still there. The concrete seats and tables are still intact.

There is a bar in another building, where beer is sold. Upon entering it, I was greeted with a smile by a pretty bar tender. There was a heated argument between two young women and a young man who threatened to beat them up. But one of the women challenged him to take a chance.

After hanging around for sometime, I could not find any of my old acquaintances. The patrons were engrossed in their talk and sipping their beer. One thing about Chibuku is that there is a spirit of sharing. A litre of Chibuku can be shared by as many as five people as they chat.

There were also women who were enjoying their drink. Another man, who was selling cigarettes, probably a Zimbabwean, was seated alone with a sad expression on his face. The late South African reggae musician, Lucky Dube's music was blaring on the speakers. On one of the tables there was a game of morabaraba, which attracted my attention. One fellow, who used to be a member of the under world, was trying to dominate the game but he was losing miserably. He later gave up and started a popular card game known as casino on another table.

After hanging around for sometime, I decided to check at the counter to inquire about the whereabouts of the person who is running the beer garden.

But I was told that he was not around by a rather not friendly attendant. Then a notice pasted on the window caught my attention: "Shake P3.20". There is also a small restaurant that serves menoto and other delicacies. I decided that maybe I should grab one pint and join the crowd.

Just as I was about to buy an old friend came and told me that he also wanted a drink. I bought one pint, which I was intending to share with him. But he had his own company that he was drinking with.

Initially I wanted to have my pint to myself. I also wanted to shake the box for myself like the way I used to do in the old days. Even for hygienic reasons, I would have preferred to drink alone. But since I wanted to converse with other people I had to forgo such principles. My friend's buddies bought more drinks and we had a party. One of the guys could shake the box so expertly.

As we were drinking, my friend warned me that wallets in this place disappear at an alarming rate. "If you are not careful, your wallet can disappear at the blink of an eye," he cautioned.

He also told me that people smoke the "weed" freely and I could also smell its distinctive smell. He also assured me that if I really wanted a good time, they had beautiful light- skinned models on standby.

After an hour and so I decided to leave the beer garden to check on other neighbouring joints. A friendly woman outside, told me that she was selling cigarettes as she waved a packet of Peter 30. But I could read from her body language and friendly smiles that she could be selling other things.

However, a resident who stays next to the beer garden, Mabedi Moilwa, is not amused by the Chibuku outlet. He complained that they have never known peace since the beer garden reopened. He said the joint was playing loud music everyday. Moilwa said patrons are irresponsible as they urinate everywhere. He said even when the place is closed at night, they loiter outside and make unbearable noise.

He said Bontleng residents once complained to the council, but a former mayor told them that complainants were envious of the person running the beer garden. He added that even the councillor for the area, has expressed concern about the noise pollution from the beer garden.

Moilwa said there are shebeens in the area but they do not play loud music. He said they have given up about the noise from the beer garden because its manager had been given a licence by the council.

As we were chatting, the woman who was selling cigarettes was waving at Moilwa. Looking rather disturbed, Moilwa told her that she was well aware that he did not smoke.

"But what do you want to buy?" she appealed to him suggestively but he responded with a smile. He just dismissed her as a joke.

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