Four ministers at MOESD
Monday, April 07, 2014
While many are wondering what is going on, and even dismissing the move by the President as dumb, there is general consensus that the Ministry of Education is too big for one Minister. However no one expected the urgency with which the President tackled the matter. While the reshuffle in Khama’s cabinet seems to have provided fodder for critics, both Mma Venson-Moitoi and Khama claim it is business as usual, amidst talk that Mma Venson-Moitoi’s re-deployment as Minister overseeing the Education project is tantamount to firing her. Mma Venson-Moitoi has been quick to use television to show her at work, addressing the European community at a GCC conference early this week, while Khama also paraded her at a Tlokweng kgotla meeting on Thursday, where he announced that the Minister remains in his Cabinet, stressing that she was not fired contrary to popular views.
Instead, it has sparked a storm of accusations, denials, and unresolved questions about the influence of De Beers on the nation’s politics. Former president Mokgweetsi Masisi’s claims that the diamond giants bankrolled his removal to dodge taxes – and that the new Umbrella for Democratic Change (UDC) government watered down a favourable diamond deal – are explosive matters. But without evidence, they risk becoming a toxic distraction from...