Open Letter: My Right of Reply — False Reports on the Sale and Administration of Notwane FC...

To the people of Botswana, the media, football stakeholders, and all concerned parties:

My name is Kealeboga Gift Mogapi. I am the lawful owner of Notwane Football Club. I write publicly for the first time since the events that began in 2013 to set the record straight about the acquisition of Notwane FC, the reforms I initiated as owner and as an officer of the Botswana Premier League (BPL), the sustained campaign of misinformation that followed, and the actions I now require for full public correction and restoration of my reputation.

Chronology and principal facts

- In July 2013 I lawfully acquired 100% of Notwane FC from the Notwane Social Club Motherbody Board of Directors, led by Mr. Segolame Ramotlhwa. After all processes were completed, the acquisition was announced at a joint media conference on Wednesday, 10 July 2013. The transaction was effected through GMG Holdings (trading as GMG Global Investments), a company incorporated in South Africa of which I am the sole owner and shareholder, with a lawfully incorporated entity in Botswana called Notwane FC Pty Ltd. All required corporate documentation, due diligence and notifications to the Botswana Football Association (BFA) and the Botswana Premier League (BPL) as per procedures were completed.

- I was then co‑opted to the BPL Board to replace Mr. Ramotlhwa as Director of Notwane FC and was elected Vice Chairman of Botswana Premier League. I immediately began implementing business, administrative and financial reforms at Notwane FC and hit the ground running and worked with BPL colleagues to professionalise league governance and stabilise finances.

- I recruited high‑calibre personnel to professionalise the club, including head coach Mr. Simon Ngomane and experienced and respected South African players in Benedict “Tso” Vilakazi and Manqoba “Shakes” Ngwenya, I also pursued international relationships, including exploratory discussions with major overseas clubs such as Manchester United, records will prove this beyond reasonable doubt. Botswana Football supporters and fans will remember the official visit of a Manchester United delegation led by a South African born and Manchester United legend Quinton Fortune.

- Over and above this progress at my club, I also became extremely influential in my role as Vice Chairman of the league and the biggest mistake I made in the eyes of those who couldn’t accept being outsmarted, was my fight for a better financial sponsorship for the league.

- I was vilified for rejecting an unwarranted proposed Government sponsorship of a mere P2 million, and pushed for a better offer of over P20 million by Supersport. Each Premier League team needed a minimum of R2 million annually to function properly yet some football administrators within the league and government wanted us to settle for R2 million, all in the name of patriotism. This did not make any business sense to me hence I stood resolute in rejecting the P2 million offer.

- A faction opposed to these reforms and fast paced progress mounted a sustained campaign of leaks, selective disclosures and false media narratives alleging the sale was unlawful and that I acted improperly. That disinformation blocked legitimate funding, destabilised the club and the league, and placed my family and me at risk.

- This faction misled the Notwane Social Club and some supporters into believing that I was not a legitimate owner of my lawfully acquired team and this led to them filing an urgent application in the Gaborone High Court seeking interim relief, including an order preventing release of stipend funds from the league due to each team. After hearing submissions and carefully considering the evidence, the High Court found the matter NOT URGENT, DECLINED THE REQUESTED URGENT RELIEF and remitted the dispute to the appropriate lower‑court processes for full adjudication. The High Court found no merit, none whatsoever, in the purported emergency. This after lies were spread around that I wanted to access the legitimate stipend funds due to my own club.

- After the unsuccessful attempt to misuse legal processes, the opposing group regrouped and escalated their actions to unlawful and coercive tactics: this included but not limited to infiltration of employees and players, inducements, literally paid staff and players to rebel against my administration, deliberate destabilisation of operations, disinformation on social media and in mainstream outlets, and threats to my life. I survived several attempts on my life; witnesses in Botswana can factually corroborate these incidents.

- The campaign included efforts to persuade service providers to submit fabricated claims against the club, while simultaneously alleging my acquisition of the very club was unlawful. These mutually inconsistent narratives—claiming I did not own the club yet expecting me to pay undisclosed “debts” were designed to obstruct my good work and at to bankrupt the club so that I could fail like some of them did.

- As a result of these malicious and concerning actions, investment opportunities vanished into thin air, club operations were materially harmed, talented players lost development pathways and the team’s performance suffered.

- Despite promises by those who sought to take over the reign and vouched to make the club great again after forcing me out, Notwane FC was went on a down spiral trajectory and ultimately got relegated from the Botswana Premier League after they illegally took control.

Important Questions to be Answered

1. Who managed Notwane FC before my acquisition, and how successful was the team under that management?

2. How did the team perform after I took ownership and before external interference began?

3. Why were members of the technical team and experienced players (including Coach Simon Ngomane, and Players Benedict “Tso” Vilakazi and Manqoba “Shakes” Ngwenya) misled or incentivised to undermine legitimate management?

4. Why were spurious claims about alleged debts advanced while the same persons demanded I pay those undisclosed liabilities?

5. How did those who removed me from effective administration expect the club to operate while they simultaneously interfered and threatened my life?

6. If indeed I was the problem, why did the club decline after I was forced out of effective control?

7. What concrete improvements did those who seized control deliver for the club, the players, supporters and football in Botswana?

Further Facts and Observations

- My acquisition and ownership of Notwane FC were lawful, fully documented and notified to the relevant football authorities.

- I introduced a business model and reforms intended to benefit Notwane FC and Botswana football generally, including bringing a high‑pedigree coach and notable South African players to Botswana for the first time in our history.

- The disinformation campaign was driven by vested selfish interests and greed, not by concern for the welfare of the club or its supporters.

- The public was fed misinformation and led astray hence there has never been any sustained tangible progress ever since I left.

- The High Court in Gaborone rejected the unwarranted urgent relief sought against me.

- The campaign’s unlawful tactics, culminating in threats to my life, forced me to prioritise my safety and mental health.

- Because of these events, promising initiatives, prospective international partnerships and player development pathways were disrupted or lost.

Relief Sought

After 13 years of false accusations and damaging misinformation, I request the following remedies to restore the truth and accountability:

1. A full and public retraction, correction and apology from media outlets, organisations and individuals who published or promoted demonstrably false claims about the legality of my acquisition and my conduct.

2. A public condemnation by relevant football authorities and stakeholder organisations of the harassment, intimidation and threats against me, my family and my associates, and an end to such conduct.

3. Formal recognition of my lawful ownership of Notwane FC and confirmation of the legitimacy of the reforms I initiated.

4. A constructive, mediated dialogue with supporters, the Notwane Social Club and relevant football authorities to agree a path that protects the club’s interests, restores institutional integrity and safeguards the welfare and careers of its players.

Recourse

I am starting with this public statement to appeal to the common sense to prevail and conscience of those implicated and responsible for the harm that has been done. I will wait 14 days to hear from them; if no one has heeded this genuine call within that period, I will instruct my legal team to commence proceedings to secure the remedies set out above.

Closing

I remain prepared to produce the documentary evidence previously submitted to the Gaborone High Court by my then legal team, led by Advocate Duma Boko (now His Excellency, President of Botswana), together with additional supporting materials. Numerous witnesses stand ready to attest to the facts.

I am also willing to provide further details to any neutral forum, media outlet or court that seeks the truth. My objective is not vengeance but restoration, of my good name, of institutional integrity at Notwane FC, and of the prospects of the players and supporters who love the club.

Should I decide to relinquish ownership of Notwane FC, I will do so voluntarily and not as a result of coercion or intimidation, as occurred previously.

To Batswana, supporters of Notwane FC and football in general: most of you were misled and subsequently fell into the trap set by those driven by greed, jealousy and hatred. I do not claim to be perfect; I do not assert that I am beyond reproach. I acknowledge that I played a part in this mess, and I am willing to help turn things around and leave a positive legacy for those who come after us. I will not, however, concede to the malicious stories that have been levelled against me. I know that I may have hurt some people when my back was pushed against the wall; I instinctively adopted a defensive posture and anyone who seemed threatening to me, got pushed away, including those who meant well. I tender my unconditional apology for my behaviour, it was only natural with no bad intentions. I have been living in pain since 2013, 13 years is a very long time, and it is time for the record to be corrected.

I am not a bitter person. Those who erred are still our brothers and sisters; they deserve guidance, and I humbly ask that we show it collectively, together as a family. It is for this reason that I extend an olive branch to those who have hurt me, unconditionally. Like His Excellency President Duma Boko and others who have our family divided by colonial boundaries, Botswana is my home just as much as South Africa is my home, both by birth and by choice. I am an Unapologetic Proud Mosarwa very resolute in my Authenticity as a Child of this Motherland. I am one of many who refuse to let colonial boundaries divide our families. Before those boundaries, we lived and travelled the length and breadth of our Motherland freely without any boundaries.

I remain committed to the progress of our club and to the development of football in our country. It pains me to see my people struggle with problems for which I have solutions. Sitting on the periphery and pointing fingers is not my way; I prefer to confront challenges directly. I ask only for fairness, the truth, and the opportunity to rebuild what was disrupted by those who sought personal gain and an undeserved stake in my club at the expense of the future. They thought they were embarrassing me, but they embarrassed themselves instead.

Ntšwa e bolawang ke mong‑a‑yona, ga e na lobelo…

Sincerely,

N!xau Kealeboga Gift Mogapi

Owner, Notwane Football Club