Popularly known by the moniker Mike, he started primary education in Kanye at Matsaakgang Primary School and completed it at Boitumelo Primary School in Sebele. He proceeded to secondary education at Moeding College in 1981 and completed it in 1985.
He served the then mandatory year of National Service (Tirelo Sechaba) at Lesenepole village, where he threw himself into community work beyond the normal call of duty.
He entered the University of Botswana (UB) in 1987 to read for a Bachelor of Arts (Humanities) degree, which he completed in 1991 and immediately enrolled for a Post Graduate Diploma in Education (PGDE) to train as a secondary school teacher.
On completion of the PGDE programme in 1992, Mike was employed by the government of Botswana and posted to Maun Senior Secondary School, where he taught English and History.
The following year, in 1993, he quit teaching to fulfil a dream he had nursed since his university days to be a journalist. He joined the editorial team of Mmegi as a reporter. Combining his natural flair for writing with his experience as a past editor of UB Scope, the University of Botswana’s student magazine, he quickly acquainted himself well with the new job and soon stood out as one of Mmegi’s leading reporters – covering a wide and diverse range of topics including politics, the courts, education, health, arts and the environment.
He made his mark in the newsroom and was promoted to senior reporter in 1995. In this responsibility, he was tasked with assisting junior reporters and standing in for the news editor, the post he was eventually promoted to in 1997.
As the news editor, he was charged with the overall management of Mmegi’s newsroom as well as leading the newspaper’s team of reporters and mentoring them. Gifted with an eye for talent, it was in this role that Mike identified and groomed many young reporters who developed into household names, some of whom later became editors and media owners in their own right.
In 1999, Mike was offered the job of editor of The Midweek Sun, the sister publication of the Botswana Guardian, by the then owner and publisher of the two newspapers, the late William Jones. Torn between loyalty to Mmegi, which had given him his first break in journalism, and the prospect of finally occupying the ultimate editorial post, he agonised over this for a while and sought the counsel of some trusted friends and colleagues. Overwhelmingly, they advised him to take on the new challenge. With a weighty heart, he resigned from Mmegi in June and took over as the fourth editor of The Midweek Sun in July 1999.
As with everything he did, Mike threw himself into his new responsibility, and repositioned The Midweek Sun in the market, which soon led to a marked rise in the paper’s readership.
It was during Mike’s tenure as editor of The Midweek Sun that – in May 2001 – the government took the unprecedented step to order all ministries and departments, parastatal organisations and companies in which the government of Botswana was a shareholder to withdraw all advertising from both The Midweek Sun and its sister publication, The Botswana Guardian. This was a retaliatory measure meant to cripple the publications against what was seen as the two papers’ critical reportage of the government. It was one of the darkest periods in the history of Botswana’s independent news media, and a very testing time for editors in the firing line, such as Mike, and they decided to fight back – not to save their jobs per se, but to safeguard media freedom in Botswana.
He was part of a collective of editors at the two newspapers that took the brave step to challenge the government’s punitive action in court, which ended with the High Court ruling in favour of the two newspapers.
After five years at the helm of The Midweek Sun, Mike was transferred to edit the company’s flagship – The Botswana Guardian – in 2004.
In 2008, the company that had bought the two newspapers in 2001 offered Mike a top executive post that, although presenting an opportunity for professional growth, took him away from the environment he loved most – the newsroom.
Once again, he sought the guidance of his network of family, friends, and colleagues. Satisfied that he had consulted widely, he decided to accept the offer to be CEO of the holding company, CBET (Pty) Ltd.
The new designation required Mike to make a transition from a journalist to a business leader, and he had to learn the ropes fast. In his new role, he oversaw the company’s entire business operation to ensure profitability and that it operated within legal and ethical confines.
Already a keen reader, Mike read widely on business management, in general, and media business in particular, to help him evolve into a business leader. It was a successful transition because he oversaw a period of growth in the company and remained in the post for close to four years when he decided to remake himself – this time as a media owner.
He co-founded and led The Global Post newspaper as managing editor in March 2012. When the venture folded in December 2013, Mike did not fold his arms. Instead, he leveraged his newfound passion for farming and started a publication dedicated to reporting Botswana’s agriculture – Agro Forum magazine.
He published Agro Forum magazine for three years, which was a major achievement given the short lifespan of magazine titles in Botswana.
In 2017, he took the job of public liaison officer for the Kanye sewerage reticulation project at Estate Construction, which he held at the time of his untimely passing. In this role, he oversaw the coordination, stakeholder engagement, communication, and public relations activities for the mega-project.
Media freedom advocate
Mike was elected the chairperson of the Botswana Chapter of the Media Institute of Southern Africa – MISA (Botswana) – in 1997. He served for two consecutive terms as chairperson of MISA (Botswana), making him an ex-officio member of the MISA regional governing council.
As chairperson of MISA (Botswana), he distinguished himself as a tireless campaigner for media freedom throughout the Southern African region.
Civic and community
From an early age, Mike was a passionate civic activist who believed that we all have it within our means to positively impact our communities and help uplift those less fortunate amongst us. He gave freely of his time and resources to civic and community activities. As a secondary school student, Mike was a member of the Botswana Work Camps Association.
He was one of the founders and the first secretary-general of the Botswana Young People’s Convention (BYPC), the pioneer youth-driven development organisation. He served on several committees and boards of community organisations in Kanye.
Family and friends
He married Khakha Moatisi in 2005–2015. They had five children – two boys and three girls: Tebogo, Lefika, Nayang, Teto, and Awetse. He is survived by three children – one boy and two girls, as well as six siblings – four brothers and two sisters. He was a great father who adored all his children.
A passionate farmer
Mike was an avid farmer who was very happy with his livestock.
Sport
Mike took up the sport of karate in secondary school and remained a martial arts practitioner throughout his university days.
