Of a callous cabinet and a lame duck parliament :: Mmegi Online

Four months after the nation went to general elections last year, some elected representatives may still be preparing to throw victory parties while others have already done so. But perhaps those in the middle of such preparations should pause because the way things are going, there may not be much to celebrate any more and a lot to worry about instead, writes BAME PIET

It started when then Vice President Ian Khama was appointed Minister of Presidential Affairs and Public Administration and Coordinator of Government Projects. But the man who wielded such immense power never saw fit, or rarely ever did, to attend Parliament to bring members up to date with what he was doing; this notwithstanding the fact that he was also the member for Serowe North, the seat that would be 'inherited' by Khama's younger brother, Tshekedi, upon the Vice President ascending to the presidency when then President Festus Mogae retired in 2008.

In the musical chairs of Botswana politics, President Khama immediately promoted his former boss in the army, Lieutenant General Mompati Merafhe, from the position of one of the longest serving foreign affairs ministers in the world to Vice President, thus ensuring his most eloquent defender.

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Inspect the voters' roll!