However, the press secretary to the President, Dr Jeff Ramsay said that he did not have the details of the whereabouts of Khama.

"I can only confirm that he will be away for a while but I guess he will be back by the end of the week," he said.

It is, however, clear that by the time he returns, Parliament would have closed for Christmas holidays. Though Nasha is bestowed the same powers as those of the President, Ramsay indicated that she would not take any major decisions without consulting with the President. "If anything, she would have to put aside some of those decisions until the President returns," he said. When the President is away, the acting president is allowed to assume all powers in the Office of the President, except the power to dissolve Parliament in accordance with the provisions of Section 91 of the constitution, the power to appoint to the office of the minister or assistant minister in accordance with the provisions of Section 42 of the constitution.

However, there is a provision that the acting president can appoint the present ministers or assistant ministers to act in place of any minister who is otherwise not available. The acting president would also not be allowed to remove a minister or assistant minister from office in accordance with the provision of Section 43 of the constitution.

The Speaker of the National Assembly, Patrick Balopi, claimed to be in the dark about the standing orders regarding holidaying while Parliament is on. "I do not know, consult with the clerk. Our standing orders are such a huge book that I will have to go back and read them," he said. However, his deputy, Gladys Kokorwe, said parliamentarians are expected to attend all parliamentary sessions unless they are on sick leave or official trips. She said no one should be allowed to go on leave while Parliament is sitting.

Throughout the year, Khama has hardly attended parliamentary sessions, which has attracted wrath from other members of Parliament, who have called on him to attend the sessions.

Member of Parliament (MP) for Gaborone Central, Dumelang Saleshando, recently launched an attack on Khama and wondered what kind of leader the VP would be when he succeeds President Festus Mogae in 2008. He accused Khama of disrespecting Parliament, as he does not report to it and yet his boss - Mogae - had mentioned in his State of the Nation Address, the importance of high performance and accountability. He said that Khama is the first VP in Botswana to take Parliament for granted. "He is here, hardly 35 minutes after a debate starts, he has disappeared. What kind of leader should we expect if he could not respect Parliament?" Saleshando asked.

As equally disturbed as Saleshando, the MP for Gaborone South, Akanyang Magama, asked the same question early this year in Parliament and even went as far as declaring Khama's seat vacant.

However, Khama has always enjoyed support from leaders of the Botswana Democratic Party (BDP), including the President. When the ombudsman ruled that he should stop flying BDF aircrafts, Mogae defended his continual usage of the aircrafts. The Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, Mompati Merafhe, recently went ballistic and described Saleshando as inhumane, rude and arrogant when he called for the VP to attend Parliament. He said the MP has no respect for the President and other legislators. Merafhe accused the MP of always denigrating Khama. He said that for Saleshando to suggest that Khama should report to Parliament is nothing more than naivety. He asserted that there is no need for Khama to report to Parliament since he should be working with the President on issues of national interest. "Perhaps we should introduce elementary lessons in public administration. This was a nonsensical statement," said Merafhe to the amusement of other MPs.