The Dixie Medicine Man

Michael Mothibi, the Editor of the Botswana Guardian newspaper, very aptly describes Christian John Makgala’s new historical novel as “An ingenious and scintillating account of cultural, social and economic transformation in Botswana over a generation written with the global reader in mind.” Although this is Makgala’s debut novel, the skill and verve with which it has been written can very easily make one think that it was written by a seasoned master storyteller. The Dixie Medicine Man is extremely fascinating and intriguing. The suspense, humour, and the use of satire in each chapter keep the reader glued to the last page. The description of village life is so vivid that even someone who has not been to Morwa gets a clear idea of how life is/was like in that village in which the novel is set. Fascinating details of everyday village life are brought to the fore. This include gossip (curiously called “Morwa Times”), the now outmoded delicacies such as dikokola (dried bread brought by migrant workers from kitchens in Johannesburg, South Africa) and bone-marrow (moko). It is hilarious that men would fight one another over bone-marrow, or seriously batter their wives for serving them meat without bones (of which they could painstakingly extract moko). It is demonstrated how urbanization and globalization have impacted on the village life over time.

The hero of the novel is a liberal white medical doctor called Leroy from the vehemently conservative state of Mississippi in America’s South (Dixie). He is employed as a medical doctor at Deborah Retief Memorial Hospital (DRM) in Mochudi in the early 1970s. However, lack of accommodation at DRM leads to Leroy staying in a village development committee house in the neighbouring Morwa and commutes daily. In Morwa he meets the old Sejaro, a renowned local traditional doctor (ngaka) who soon trains him to become a traditional doctor. Leroy was introduced to Sejaro and other important personalities in Morwa by a Morwa man called Jealousman, an erudite, influential and sophisticated Second World War veteran. Before long the relations between the two men gets sour as Jealousman bitterly feels upstaged by Leroy.

After graduating as a ngaka Leroy quits his day job at the hospital to run what he calls Honky Tonk Traditional Medical Service in Morwa. He becomes a reputable traditional doctor whose clients include priests from all over the country and even the neighbouring South Africa. Leroy is also elected a member of the politburo of the Botswana Witchdoctors Guild which he helps transform from being a scandal-prone and discredited entity into a modern and respectable institution. However, there are many challenges and intriguing setbacks involving some unscrupulous traditional doctors conniving with criminals (diamond thieves).

Later Leroy marries a local lady called Mmabatho, a trainee teacher who wins a by-election to become a councillor for Morwa under the slogan “YES WE CAN”. Although there are opportunities and attempts for Leroy and Jealousman to reconcile, these are short-lived and hostility quickly resumes. Together with Mmabatho Leroy becomes an active participant in community initiatives and developments as members of the Morwa village development committee for decades. Meanwhile this leads to an epic attempt by Jealousman to undermine Leroy, and even deliberately leads him to a collision course with village authorities.

Through the relationship between Leroy, Jeaoulsman and other characters Makgala has managed, to my admiration, to re-write and re-contextualize Botswana history and society through fiction. In doing so, he skillfully puts into perspective, the socio-economic, cultural and political development of contemporary Botswana into a global context.

Again Makgala skillfully and cleverly uses Leroy and other Morwa villagers to demonstrate the role of the institution of the village development committee and the traditional village kgotla forum in helping to combat corruption and ensure accountability in government bureaucracy. This helps to understand why Botswana has consistently been rated one of the least corrupt countries in Africa, a continent where most countries have been brought to their knees by corruption in government. The village development committee is also used as a vehicle by villagers in Morwa and other parts of the country in a campaign against diamond theft by unscrupulous individuals. High level of patriotism is shown by villagers who strongly believe that diamonds should not fall into wrong hands because they are a critical source of the country’s revenue for development. By contrast in other African countries mineral wealth has largely brought misery as unscrupulous elements brutally use villagers to mine minerals which benefit just a handful of well-connected individuals which fuels civil wars.

Makgala, a lapsed Catholic, presents the views of villagers on the controversial issue of celibacy which hinders recruitment of local men into priesthood of the Catholic Church. There is also demonstration of deep appreciation of corporal punishment by Morwa villagers who believe that it is very effective in reforming wayward children and criminals into well-behaved people. An example of this is a young South African refugee, curiously called Vuvuzela Mkhize, who arrived in Morwa soon after the Soweto students’ uprising of 16 June 1976. His criminal and wild behaviour greatly bothered everybody in Morwa and after a lot of hesitation he was tried and flogged at village kgotla. He reformed overnight to become a churchgoing and responsible man. Interesting, Leroy is reluctant to endorse corporal punishment because he says that historically it was used abusively on the black people in America’s South. It is interesting and fitting that Makgala discusses the issue of corporal punishment in his novel because recently this has been a very controversial and emotive issue in the Kgatleng District, the region where Makgala originates.

Again through Leroy and other characters Makgala is able to show the positive role played by the Embassy of the United States in Gaborone and US Peace Corps volunteers in the development of Botswana, and later in the fight against the HIV/AIDS scourge. The legendary efforts by America’s Ambassadors to Botswana, Joseph Huggins (2002-2005) and Katherine Canavan (2005-2008), are acknowledged and deeply appreciated. Mississippi is also portrayed in a favourable light while also acknowledging the state’s rather unfortunate history of violent race relations. The visits by American Presidents Bill Clinton in 1998 and George W Bush in 2003 to Botswana form an interesting subject of conversation between Leroy and Mmabatho. Bill Clinton and George Bush come from the Southern states of Arkansas and Texas which are in close proximity to Mississippi, and this leads to Leroy yearning to go back home. However, the Morwa villagers are not prepared to let such a resourceful community mobilizer leave them.