Veteran journalist wins precious Debswana stone
When Duma FM news correspondent Joy Chikura left her house in the early evening last Monday, her plan was to unwind to good music and tuck into great food at the Debswana-sponsored National Business Conference (NBC) dinner.
It was a routine assignment, the type the veteran scribe has covered countless times over the years.
However, this time fortune delivered a sparkling surprise.
The jolly journalist walked away with a diamond in a lucky draw conducted by the mining giant’s to celebrate the nation’s 60-year Independence Anniversary.
For a journo accustomed to reporting other people’s stories, the spotlight now shifted to her.
As a correspondent, Chikura spends her days gathering information, cross-checking facts and bringing news to listeners.
This time she became the headline, a stroke of luck placing her at the center of a remarkable tale.
Although she has attended Debswana events for many years, even touring the Orapa, Letlhakane, and Damtshaa Mines (OLDM), the Zimbabwe native had never laid eyes on a diamond until that evening.
Now she owns one!
“The only gem I knew before then was my daughter born 28 years ago. I named her Ruby, which means a red gemstone,” Chikura chuckles in an exclusive interview with The Voice.
It makes the buzz surrounding her diamond delight doubly intriguing, a happy coincidence that prompted smiles, laughter, and a little wonder from dinner attendees, including Debswana Managing Director, Andrew Maatla Motsumi.
Chikura explains she chose the name Ruby because she believed she was her diamond and that things were going to work out for her.
“It’s such an honour to have won, and I’m told it’s the first time in many years that Debswana has given out a diamond. I’m still savoring the moment and dedicate this diamond to all the journalists who are doing a great job sacrificing their time to inform the nation,” says Chikura.
The former Voice reporter has elected to keep the diamond’s value a secret for now, but the coy smile she gives every time she speaks about her stone gives her away; she’ll have a joyous Christmas.
