Moswaane, Kokorwe lock horns again
Baboki Kayawe | Friday December 4, 2015 12:04
This comes a day after the Botswana Democratic Party Member of Parliament (MP) burst into tears while pleading for the same motion on water to go through.
Yesterday, the unstoppable parliamentarian vowed to speak on the matter until a solution was rendered “as people are languishing in thirst”.
Moswaane’s undying desire to have the motion addressed reached boiling point when he told Speaker of the National Assembly, Gladys Kokorwe that he had followed due procedure.
He said that contrary to information Kokorwe received from her deputy, Kagiso Molatlhegi he followed the right channels to have the motion reach Parliament.
According to Kokorwe, Molatlhegi had informed her that Moswaane failed to comply with laid down processes of bringing forth a motion on urgency grounds.
However, the former Francistown mayor maintained that he filed his motion last week and that the deputy Speaker, who was acting Speaker then, had advised him to consult with Minister of Minerals, Energy and Water Resources, Kitso Mokaila first.
He said he then objected to that.
“I then told him I couldn’t do that. I don’t pray false idols,” charged Moswaane, who added that he could not seek Mokaila’s permission for his motion to be heard. “The deputy Speaker is a professional liar. We are playing games when people are suffering. For this House to be honourable it has to decide on the water issues,” Moswaane said.
“We need to declare a state of emergency on the water and electricity situation.”
“Batswana are without water, they cannot use private rooms as we speak. Yet we are drinking water in Parliament, which we did not request for. I am prepared to die for this issue, and Speaker, do not even think of kicking me out because I will remove you from that seat,” he added.
When asked to withdraw his statement that Molatlhegi is a liar Moswaane refused saying he would rather be thrown out of the House instead.
“I am not apologising on this one. Over my dead body, because I am talking about water shortage and even if I withdraw (the comment) the problem will still remain,” he said.
He said the country was resourced enough to bring an end to the prevailing water woes.
He said that people, especially in the Greater Gaborone area, are “buying water to flush their toilets and begging for facilities in the city to relieve themselves”.
Early this winter, Gaborone Central MP Phenyo Butale sought to bring the same urgent motion, but his persistence got him thrown out of the House.