Shadow cabinets, while new to Botswana, are universally acceptable practice in advanced democracies. The idea of a shadow cabinet is not new. In the 1990s, the Botswana National Front, during the days of the late Dr Kenneth Koma, the idea had been mooted but never took off.
In the United Kingdom, when the Labour Party was in power, the Conservatives kept them accountable through the arrangement. Even in neighbouring South Africa, the opposition Democratic Alliance has a shadow cabinet. The concept of shadow cabinet is indeed a good move since the appointed leaders can concentrate on specific portfolios and address issues as and when they arise. They can afford to engage the public and Batswana will also be able to scrutinise their readiness to take over the reigns. A shadow cabinet will be especially good in today’s Botswana that is grappling with a multitude of problems. Among the many challenges Botswana has, are the recent debilitating power and water outages, something many observers reason may lead to job loses and an increase in unemployment. This in turn will lead to an increase in crime, and the prison population. This then means that someone in the opposition should be monitoring and readily availing alternative solutions. This should also in turn speak to the electorate who for many years has had to listen to opposition politicians’ complaints and dismissive attitude to everything government offers, without giving specific alternatives that are real. More interesting about the BCP shadow cabinet is that it has also addressed some of the pertinent issues on gender and youth representation.
