Battle for bogosi divides Dibodu clan
A family connected by blood and history is on the brink of being torn apart by an insatiable appetite for money and power.
The two branches of the Moitsheki Dibodu family are locked in a bitter dispute over who should be the Headman of Arbitration for Tapela ward in Seleka village.
The ward was officially registered in 1997, with its caretaker, Keeditse Gontse, formally appointed in 2007.
Gontse seemingly presided over matters affecting the ward at the kgotla without incident for years.
However, the introduction of travel allowances and remuneration at the B2 scale for headmen of arbitration in 2018 has triggered a surge in bogosi-related conflicts.
This, according to Gontse, has pitted him against the great-grandson of Moitsheki Dibodu.
Last Tuesday, Kgosi Kesetse Ramatakadibe of Ramokgonami village presided over a heated meeting between the two factions, held in front of a packed kgotla.
The families were seeking a final ruling on who should succeed Gontse.
With the rightful heirs either deceased or married out of the line of succession, the seat has now fallen to the third and fourth generations of the Dibodu family.
According to the family, only four people with direct lineage to the seat remain, none of whom were present at the meeting.
After listening to both sides, Kgosi Ramatakadibe noted that issues of bogosi are deeply emotional and require a delicate and fair approach.
However, he emphasised that when he adjudicates such matters, he sets emotions aside and follows procedure to the letter.
“As you’re all here, you know who the rightful heir is. You know who, according to customary law, is senior. You cannot tell me you have no idea who should take over. You do and we will find that person.”
The Ramokgonami royal, speaking firmly, added that it does not matter whether the rightful heir is married, has forfeited the position, or wishes to pass it on to a preferred nephew.
“There is a procedure we follow, and that procedure will lead us to the rightful heir,” he reiterated.
Ramatakadibe then ordered that the four key individuals who were absent from the meeting must submit written letters declaring their position on the matter.
“If they are no longer interested in the position, they must state that, and then we begin the journey of identifying the rightful person,” he ruled.
He gave the family until January next year to complete all the necessary paperwork to help bring the matter to finality.
In the meantime, Gontse remains in the seat.
