A lot was said and if we are to go by the book, we can safely say we are on the right track. It was indeed a statement of intent and the President laid out a clear road map of how he wants this country to progress. We believe that those in charge of implementing the projects will be up to the task. Batswana are anxiously waiting for developments to be brought closer to them so that their lives can be improved. We believe Khama spoke about issues that Batswana were anxious to hear about. Recently Khama told the nation that he was giving the agricultural sector priority and to demonstrate this, he has indicated that a manufacturing village will be set up in Pandamatenga, with the sole intention of improving the sector. This is a welcome development. We hope this will go a long way towards helping this country become sustainable in food production. Botswana is highly dependent on agricultural imports, especially from South Africa. The President also reported that the Maun abattoir will be opened. The abattoir services an area with a large cattle population and its closure robbed the people in Ngami of a livelihood, as they could not sell their cattle. The opening of the abattoir will also enhance the beef industry in the country and will come as some sort relief and empowerment to the people in the area. Though we commend the President on the good things he spoke about, we however feel that he disappointed the nation in some areas. Recently there have been some contentious issues that we felt the President should have addressed strongly, like the issue of extra-judicial killings, which has been a subject of debate. We believe the President only paid lip service to the issue and we felt he should have informed the nation on what is going to be done to resolve it. Another issue relates to the Media Act. This is still a matter of controversy as some stakeholders feel there has not been proper consultation. It is wrong for the President to have said there was proper consultation. The private media feel they were done a great injustice when the Bill was rushed through Parliament. All in all we feel that if the projects outlined can be implemented, they will take us somewhere.
