BOMU to re-introduce funeral cover scheme for artists

Artists need to put aside their ‘celebrity’ mentality and start making smart investing – Ntsie

GOSEGO MOTSUMI

Botswana Musicians Union (BOMU) Secretary General Pagson Ntsie says they have decided to reintroduce a funeral cover scheme following the tragic car accident involving Charma Gal’s band members.
He said the incident was an eye opener for most artists as they now support the idea of a funeral cover. “In 2011 BOMU introduced FSG funeral cover scheme that covered up to eight members with a P12 000 funeral cover for each. It was a reasonable package and most artists did not welcome the idea and said we wanted to reap them off their hard earned money and we dropped the idea,” he said.
According to Ntsie, BOMU will be meeting with Letshego as well as revisiting FSG to find a scheme that will be suitable to artists. “This time around we want to have a formal agreement with everyone who is involved in the music industry as well as the presence of the media and key stakeholders who will be able to back us up incase artists decide to turn against their word,” he said, further stating that this was another way the union was making an effort to better the industry.
Ntsie said the reason artists struggle to make ends meet or even cover bills in times of need was because most of them glorify the glamorous lifestyle: “Most of them have fake lifestyles to please their friends. When they make money being a celebrity and blowing money on cars and irrelevant things becomes more important and they end up dying poor.”
He advised artists to make smart investments and improve their performance charges. “We will try to workshop them, advise on the best performance rates and have a reality check where they will get to tour a successful artists life so they get inspired,” he said, giving the example of South Africa’s gospel artist Rebecca Malope who he says was able to sustain her brand through the years as well as coming up with a gospel television show.