Kedikilwe to become Vice President?

KOPANO OLESITSE
Correspondent | Friday February 4, 2011 00:00

'The fact that President Ian Khama appointed Kedikilwe to act in his absence when he went to South Africa, coupled with his wisdom, maturity, length of time in the civil service and dedication to his work, make him suitable to succeed the ailing Mompati Merafhe as the VP.

Apart from Merafhe's illness, we all know that Khama made it clear when he took the oath of office that Merafhe will be replaced,' elaborated Raditlhokwa.

He added that Kedikilwe has the potential to stabilise factions within the ruling Botswana Democratic Party (BDP).

'But one thing that is clear about Kedikilwe is that he does not have the ambition of becoming the next President of the of Botswana because age is not on his side. In addition, if he becomes the VP, he will not serve beyond the 2014 general election because at that moment, Khama will be looking for an heir to the throne and that will have to be someone he trusts,' added Raditlhokwa.

He added: 'Apart from Kedikilwe, Venson-Moitoi had the potential to be the VP, but her performance at the Ministry of Education raised questions about her capabilities.'

He also said that Batswana have confidence in Kedikilwe's work, which spans decades in the civil service: 'After Kedikilwe lost the BDP chairmanship to Khama in 2008, he never became bitter, but rather accepted defeat. Also, the public has always expected that Kedikilwe will be made the next VP at some point. If Kedikilwe is not picked as the next VP, someone from outside of parliament and cabinet may be picked to become the next VP'. On Merafhe's health condition: 'Should Merafhe get well, there is a possibility that he may resume his duties as the VP, but not sooner. There is also a possibility that he may be dropped from being the VP or from cabinet all together and thus remaining an ordinary Member of Parliament (MP).

'But Merafhe should give his health top priority. If his health condition is serious, it will be better for him to resign from active politics. One obvious thing is that Merafhe was not ready to be dropped as the VP because he felt good about himself and working for the nation. He also trusted his work.'

On Khama's visit to Merafhe in South Africa: 'I think Khama wanted to show solidarity and support to Merafhe because he is a long time colleague and friend. He was Khama's boss at the BDF barracks. He wanted to show support and a sense of compassion to the nation, the BDP and Merafhe's family in general. Obviously his condition will have some negative effects on his work.'