Where is the Masisi roadmap?

Mmegi Editor | Friday June 8, 2018 11:25

His ascension brought about renewed hope for many citizens of this country who have faced life struggles such as unemployment, low wages, poverty, crime, HIV and AIDS, alcohol and drug abuse, and other socially related ills. Many, if not all, awaited his inauguration with bated breath, anxious to know what their incoming President had in store for them that would be different from what his immediate predecessor had offered.

In less than two months Masisi will reach 100 days in office. Despite that, the President is yet to lay a clear roadmap for his leadership and governance.

Granted, he has already made some telling decisions. He has reversed the decision to declare a lawyer, one Joao Salbany a prohibited immigrant (PI). Salbany, who handled high profile cases, was P’Ied just prior to Masisi’s 60 days in office, which saw the new President addressing the media, 10 years since a sitting President had met the press. Much hype has been created around the issues relating to the alcohol levy and liquor trading hours, with Masisi vowing to ensure to reverse the harsh decisions of the previous government on the hours. He is yet to show that he is the President the country really needs.

It was expected that the President would tell the nation his vision and put it there for all to see and scrutinise, but he has been busy globetrotting.

Maybe he wants to play his cards close to his chest, as he looks for new ideas. But for someone who was Vice President for three years and knew that he would ascend to the office, he should have put up a proper roadmap for his turn to rule.

This is crucial going into next year’s general elections. Batswana want to know if this is the man they would want as their President for the next five years or not.

His inauguration speech was flat, filled with repeated old fairytales that were never put into action by the previous administration.

However, when he addressed his first press conference which was unheard of during his predecessor’s reign, expectations were high that he was going to deliver a clear roadmap. But it was also an anticlimax.

With such hopes and expectations, one would say his first 100 days in office could be a disappointment to a young person who has been roaming the streets jobless for the past 10 years with his/her certificates gathering dust in the closet.

Although it is early days to judge, so far it has been a letdown. The nation could only hope that the President would make up for lost time in the next two months, give us renewed hope and live up to his hype. Otherwise, Masisi is non-committal and is only groping in the dark. 

Today’s thought 

“All you need is the plan, the roadmap, and the courage to press on to your destination.” 

– Earl Nightingale