FREEDOM SQUARE
This week on Freedom Square we look at unrelated opinions from Batswana. Here are some of them:
The constitution enables corruption
The biggest problem of Botswana lies in its constitution. The document provides a fertile and enabling environment for corruption and mal administration. For us to have true representatives of the people we should:
1. Bar all politicians from participating in government tenders. This is because politicians have inside information and power to influence the awarding of these tenders. They should provide oversight to ensure that due process is followed when these tenders are awarded. You cannot be a participant and provide oversight at the same time.
2. All politicians should declare their assets. They should be role models and show us it is possible to accumulate wealth without stealing.
3. Politicians should be accountable to the electorates. They should have developmental targets, roadmap with clear and defined timelines. An individual
campaign must lay bare the envisioned development , its goals and the expected outcomes. This should be among key components when evaluating an elected individual. [Olebogeng Koontse]
Food for thought for President Masisi
Dear Mokgweetsi Masisi: Can’t we stop competing with other countries in terms of motor cars development and assembling, and instead we utilise the resources we have and that we can produce to our abilities and sell finished products instead of primary goods.
Botswana cattle or beef is said to be one of the best in the world, can’t we increase the number of cattle breeders by funding and allocating ranches to groups of Batswana to do commercial breeding in those ranches, using an easier and affordable programme tailored to create employment and encourage busine s s development? The groups could partner with the government through LEA and Agribusiness or other government institutions such as CEDA, and operate the businesses together at 30 percent for government and 70 percent for owners until the loan is fully paid.
The cattle would then be slaughtered and meat products be produced at larger scale and reduce import of dog feeds, fertilizers, and importation of other foreign meat products.
Can’t we fill up our barren land with livestock production and the respective abattoirs be revived to their full operation? Who doesn’t want to run his or her own cattle production business?
How many jobs can be created from ranches, abattoirs and finished meat producers? We can engage food nutritionists and chefs to develop more ECCO beef products by taste and value and the marketing team could work tirelessly to make products available at tourism camps, in and out of the country, market to hotels and private individuals at a reasonable price. Ga re itlhomogele pelo ka beef e e rekisiwang mo dishopong, le dimausu tota e tswa mafatsheng a sele betsho? Let’s ponder. [Davidson Mapetla]
Opposition unity essential but whither Principle?
It is fascinating to see opposition parties finally agreeing to put the greed and selfishness of their leaders aside to work towards cooperation. We have said this many times and we have been ignored because of greed and egos – the Botswana Democratic Party will continue to rule this country as long as our opposition political party leaders are greedy and selfish. It is this greed and selfishness that has stalled opposition cooperation in the past. In 2014 Saleshando felt the BCP was in pole position to take over power and refused to work with the UDC because he wanted every benefit of power for himself and only those close to him within the party. There is no better time than 2014 that the ruling BDP could have been defeated. Come 2019 elections it was Boko and Saleshando whose selfishness and greed pushed out other opposition parties. The numbers and goodwill they lost by side lining the BMD and the Alliance for Progressives could have helped rescue power from Tomokoraga. How they found it fitting to embrace Ian Khama against whom they had been fighting all these years, but could not do the same for Ndaba Gaolathe and Sidney Pilane beats logic.
They decided to work with Khama who indeed helped them win constituencies in Mahalapye, Bobonong, Shoshong extending to even Kapinga’s constituency. Yet they could not embrace truer comrades in the BMD and AP. Only now when the BPF of Khama calls for inclusion of AP do they embrace them.
Where is Principle on our comrades? Is it about emancipating the people or about doing it for themselves? So Khama now is their red carpet to power and he is okay? We want opposition unity but the way we are going about it is worrisome. [Tshepang Mooketsane]