Truant ministers anger UDC MPs

On average, Parliament sessions last for four hours, but on Tuesday, members left 29 minutes after convening, with frustrated opposition MPs reading sinister signs into the absence of some ministers. The MPs said the absences were a ploy by some Cabinet ministers to avoid or delay answering ‘controversial’ questions asked in Parliament.

On Tuesday, a question on the intended purchase of Gripen aircraft by the Botswana Defence Force (BDF) went unanswered due to the absence of Defence, Justice and Security minister, Shaw Kgathi. Another question on the role of the newly established Tourism Intelligence Services was equally deferred to a later date, as Environment, Natural Resources Conservation and Tourism minister, Tshekedi Khama could not be found.