Defence spending needs careful consideraiton

 According to various undisclosed sources the BDF is poised to procure atleast eight fighter jets from South Korea amounting to around P3 billion.

We need to caution that we are not of the perennial anti-procurement school. The reality is that we have a defence force and to keep a defence force able, it needs to be provided with the necessary infrastructure whether manpower or equipment. There is a culture in Botswana of classifying any procurement by the BDF as either unnecessary or too steep. We think this kneejerk reaction cannot be helpful. The nation needs to recognise that some type of replenishment of our defence infrastructure is necessary. Unless you seek to disband your military the reality is that you have to be prepared to invest in its systems. This has to be done within our means of course.