Wither Botswana

DAN MOABI | Friday April 8, 2011 00:00

The match was crucial for Botswana because if the Zebras won it, they would thereby qualify for the 2012 African Cup of Nations (AFCON) finals. So the ministry's gesture (the very first of its kind for any sport in the country's history) was not a total surprise. What was surprising to some people was the level of the government's generosity, given its constant plea that owing to the recent worldwide recession, it is short of funds for almost everything it has to do.

This element of surprise on the part of many residents of Botswana became more pronounced when, after Botswana indeed won the match, the sports ministry also announced that each of the team members would be paid P20 000, while the team officials would receive P10 000 each. However, the increased level of surprise was insignificant compared to the level of elation that overwhelmed the entire nation following the significant victory of the Zebras over Chad.

While the nation celebrated this outstanding achievement, together with the hitherto unknown generosity of the government towards any national team, the government made it known that its generous assistance to the Zebras and their supporters was thanks to none other than the alcohol levy.

President Ian Khama, it will be recalled, almost single-handedly introduced the levy soon after his accession to the presidency in 2008. An unshakable teetotaller and staunch believer in the evilness of any type of alcoholic beverage, Khama had announced his intention to introduce the levy at a now-memorable kgotla meeting at Gabane, a tiny village near Gaborone. No doubt, the kgotla meeting was just as tiny.

This did not really surprise anyone, for President Khama's abhorrence of alcohol is well known. What surprised many in this country was the meek manner in which Khama's cabinet seemed to have fallen hook, line and sinker for the idea of an alcohol-levy. For while the country's constitution grants the President unlimited decision-making powers, this was no justification for   the cabinet's meekness. Mind you, there was not even any attempt to demonstrate by means of statistics the extent to which our nation had become alcohol-dependent. It was as though it was enough simply for the Gabane kgotla meeting to have shared President Khama's anti-alcohol views.

Unfortunately, this apparently lackadaisical manner of the cabinet now seems to be the order of the day.

When the alcohol levy was introduced, the message from the government was fairly clear that it would be used to fund a campaign aimed at increasing awareness of the problems caused by alcohol abuse. The levy would also be used to rehabilitate those who were already alcoholics. But apart from some unimaginative advertisements on Btv and elsewhere, the millions of pula raised from the levy have merely created a large fund, which is available to the government to use as it pleases, especially for purposes not included in the normal government budget.

Thus, the fund has been used for funding public works for the unemployed; constituency tournaments and farming and business projects for unemployed youth; and virtually anything else that the government wishes to do but for which it has no budget provision - e.g. flying Zebras supporters to Chad and paying generous allowances to the Zebras and their officials. God only knows what else the alcohol-levy fund has been used for, about which the public knows nothing. In short, the considerable alcohol-levy fund has virtually been turned into a government slush fund.

This was possible because the alcohol levy does not seem to be governed by any piece of legislation. It seems to be a kind of tax that was conceived and formalised by the executive for its own purposes, and over which the National Assembly appears to have no say whatsoever. In contrast, all other taxes are authorised by Parliament and have specific purposes for which they are imposed, as well as regulations that govern their use. 

Given these disturbing, undemocratic characteristics of the alcohol levy (unless there is something that, being outside the government system, I am unaware) I am surprised that the alcohol industry has so far done nothing to challenge the legality of the levy. Of course, Kgalagadi Breweries tried to challenge the validity of the levy in its early days but failed after the government reportedly twisted the arm of the Botswana Development Corporation (BDC), a major shareholder in Kgalagadi Breweries, to scuttle the challenge.

But what about the other players in the alcohol industry? Why do they not take over from where Kgalagadi Breweries was forced to leave off its legal challenge? I hope the industry will consider doing something about this important issue.

The problem with letting the alcohol levy continue until President Khama retires and his successor (hopefully) abolishes it is that by that time, Botswana politicians will have become so accustomed to its many political advantages that there might already be many other levies in existence.