Cut the bottled water, buy sanitisers, Molale tells councils
Tsaone Basimanebotlhe | Friday March 13, 2020 17:00
Speaking at the Botswana Association of Local Authorities’ (BALA) National Conference held this week, Molale said all stakeholders had to come on board to combat the threat posed by the global pandemic.
“Consider cutting down the budget for bottled water and buy sanitisers that could be accessed by all officers in order to reduce the risk of contacting the virus.
“We need to educate our officers about this disease.
“I also urge councillors to hold kgotla meetings to educate their voters on the disease and how they could protect themselves.
“It’s time we come together and keep the environment clean in order to reduce the risk of the virus. Our people should try to minimise their travels,” Molale said.
Still on ccoronavirus prevention, Molale said councils should also look into the issue of primary schools which still use pit latrines. He said the maintenance of the said toilets leaves a lot to be desired. “I will be visiting councils this week and next week to talk about these issues and how they can be addressed. The virus cannot be controlled if the toilets are dirty. It’s time we stand together as a nation to ensure the virus does not reach us.”
Molale stressed the need for ablutions used by students to be cleaned on a regular basis for better hygiene as well as the prevention of the virus.
Kgatleng District Council (KDC) secretary, Mpho Mathe, acknowledged the minister’s concerns explaining that his council was equally concerned about maintenance of toilets in primary schools.
“Our council has been having financial constraints, but we will have to come up with ways in which we can reduce the risk of the virus spreading in our country.
“The primary schools will have to engage some cleaners and we can achieve some of the things through the help of the community.
“Of course we have to hold meetings with parents to sensitise them about the disease and how we can help each other.
“Both the ministries of Education and Local Government have to work together to find ways on how sanitisers could be supplied even in primary schools,” Mathe said.
Meanwhile the Minister of Health and Wellness, Lemogang Kwape requested council officials to visit villages in order to share information on how the disease can be prevented.
“We will be going around sensitising people about the disease and we are asking all leaders to help us to spread the message,” he said.