The 1994 elections which focused on the urgent need to democratise our election process by instituting an independent body to administer the process also come to mind as hard fought also. In 1994 the opposition focused more or less on the single issue of democratising the general elections process. The main opposition BNF demanded an independent body to administer the election process and the enfranchisement of 18-year olds and Batswana who at the time of the elections were absent in foreign lands working, or at school. The issue was so hot that the BNF had four-years prior to the elections taken a resolution to boycott these elections if the government did not concede to the demand of the opposition.
One year after the adoption of the resolution, the BNF rescinded the boycott provided it would be pursued relentlessly afterwards were the government not accede to the demand before the elections. The elections campaign was electric and produced the increase of BNF MPs from three to a whopping 13 MPs. The results prompted the ruling Domkrag fearing farther unpalatable future erosion or loss of political power to the opposition, reviewed the constitution. First they introduced a two- five-year tenure for the president. Previously the country’s constitution did not prescribe the length of the president’s term in office. In addition the constitution was amended to introduce automatic succession whereby the sitting president appointed a vice president who automatically succeeded him/her in the eventuality of whatever happened to the sitting president. The provision is controversial and remains a subject of political discourse. This was a big post-election achievement. A bigger achievement was of course the institution of the Independent Electoral Commission, which ended the cheek of the ruling party being player and referee in its own game,
