Where are the jobs Mr President?

On Monday and after almost an hour of delay, the President of Botswana Ian Khama delivered his state of the Nation Address (SONA). The President looked and sounded like he was in a hurry to finish reading the speech and leaving the chamber. There was no sign of flu or cold that the Speaker talked about as the main reason for the delay of the delivery of the speech.

A possibility was even made by the Speaker that in the event the President fails to complete his SONA speech, the Vice President may have to assist him. The President didn’t connect with the speech, it was as if he was reading somebody else’s speech and didn’t exude confidence in whatever he was saying.

Disappointingly and characteristic of him,  the President has failed to present a critical and fair assessment of Botswana’s daunting challenges in so far as the economy is concerned. He missed an opportunity to respond to issues raised by opposition political parties, civil society, students, media and academia that job creation remains a pie in the sky under his presidency. After eight years in office, most Batswana no longer have high expectations on the SONA, even the public gallery and outdoor tents for the public are seldom packed to capacity like before. People have simply given up on the administration.

Editor's Comment
Inspect the voters' roll!

The recent disclosure by the IEC that 2,513 registrations have been turned down due to various irregularities should prompt all Batswana to meticulously review the voters' rolls and address concerns about rejected registrations.The disparities flagged by the IEC are troubling and emphasise the significance of rigorous voter registration processes.Out of the rejected registrations, 29 individuals were disqualified due to non-existent Omang...

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