22 Mar 2022

Rhumba legend, Frank Lesokwane, popularly known as Franco has partnered with the Ministry of Health and Wellness in an effort to get Batswana to take COVID-19 vaccine. 

In an interview, Franco indicated that the campaign dubbed #Francooabitsa kick-started this past weekend and had already covered places like Palapye, Selebi Phikwe, Francistown and Molepolole.

“The aim of the activation is to get as many people as possible to vaccinate ahead of our Soul Fill Up with Franco festival billed for April 2. We are expecting a bumper crowd at the festival, which means that it will be a hotspot for possible transmission, so the more people vaccinated the better,” he said. 

Franco said although their wish was that all those who came to the festival be vaccinated, they could not enforce it as a requirement as the vaccine was not mandatory according to the laws of the country. 

He also indicated that their wish was to have started the activation as early as February, but due to some logistics, they started late. 

“We are now in a rush to cover as many places as we can. The plan is to cover major villages and towns as they have a larger population,” he said. 

He said so far, Batswana had welcomed the activation in large numbers in places they had covered. 

“The good thing is that Batswana do not just come to enjoy free music, but they vaccinate in large numbers because we travel with the DHMT team,” he indicated. 

Further, Franco said attendants stood a chance to win free tickets to the festival. 

“We just give away tickets by asking questions randomly and reward those who respond accordingly, just like it is common with freebies in activation activities,” he said. 

Franco also said with the advice of the ministry, they were likely to add other places not in the initial schedule.

 “Some people are reluctant to vaccinate because they claim that their immune system is strong, but even if that was the case, they should be alive to the fact that they interact with other members of the community who may not be as strong, hence the need to vaccinate,” he said. Ends