Moyo Guma slams colleagues
Lerato Maleke | Thursday November 20, 2014 11:26
Responding to the State of the Nation Address by President Ian Khama, Guma said that MPs should not forget that they represent the people and they should respect each other in the House. “No matter that one is your opponent in the opposition you should respect him/her,” he said adding that if the country goes to the dogs, nobody will be spared “no matter that one is in the opposition or the ruling party”.
The MP said the leadership should also be respected despite differences in opinion. He advised legislators to abide by and respect the decisions of their parties. “Remember that all of us we are here because of the people who voted for us through our parties,” he said. Guma added that no one came to Parliament as an individual.
“For example you Butale you are here because of UDC,” he asserted pointing at UDC Gaborone Central MP, Phenyo Butale. Guma said that every decision taken by a party including his (BDP) should be respected. “We differ to agree. But at the end of the day, we should respect the decision taken by the leadership,” he stressed.
He told Butale that by allegiance he meant that every MP must tell the truth, and that they must not forget that they have taken the oath and they represent the people. “We expect you to improve the lives of the people who voted for you, not just spending five years having done nothing to develop them,” he said. Guma stated that MPs cannot operate in isolation and therefore, should make collective decisions. “You Butale, UDC brought you here and you did not come to this House in your individual capacity,” he asserted.
Guma said his constituency is facing a major challenge in the Foot and Mouth Disease and leaders need to work collectively on the problem. “Our constituency is on the border and therefore we live with this disease.
The elderly are dying because of the loss of their cattle and some are sick,” he said. He said that as people keep crossing the border at un-gazetted points, they have no choice but to continue living with the disease. “As the SADC community, we need to work together and fight the disease as a lot of people have been impoverished by it,” he asserted.
He said there is a possibility of another FMD outbreak around Plumtree in Zimbabwe that may easily spread to Botswana because of the border crossings at ungazetted points.
He said that government is sitting on a time bomb regarding youth unemployment. “Every time in this House we debate the same issue, graduates being unemployed and roaming the streets,” he said. He urged the BDP government to urgently find a solution to unemployment.