Two people tragically died in Itsholoke lands near Khakhea village recently after drinking a ‘khadi’ traditional brew.
Mabutsane Station Commander, Superintendent Batani Lehuma, confirmed that the duo allegedly drank the said beer last Wednesday. “The case was not reported and as our mandate is to protect peoples’ lives, we started our investigations after I was alerted by the District Commissioner,” he said.
The deceased, a 46-year-old woman who had prepared the beer is said to have invited her 74-year-old male neighbour to drink the beer at her place.
After drinking, the duo started vomiting and they were taken to Khakhea clinic where they were referred to Jwaneng Hospital and later taken to Princess Marina Hospital.
The woman died the same day while her neighbour died two days later. “We do not know what could have transpired as we are still investigating the case. We’ll await the outcome of the postmoterm to determine the course of our investigations,” said Lehuma.
The police boss said these common traditional beers Khadi, Nkumbi, Stopoti and Lla are the ones causing problems.
He encouraged people to be cautious with their ingredients when preparing such beverages and also ask to for assistance from experts.
“Brewing and selling alcohol is still prohibited, people should stop violating the COVID-19 regulations by making home brews, they should protect themselves,” said Lehuma before explaining that the people in his policing area were very cooperative and obeying the rules during the lockdown lockdown period except three recorded cases of stock theft which were reported.
The tragic incident is said to be the first one that occurred in the Mabutsane area in the Southern District.