Ntlo ya Dikgosi should be our House of Lords

Kgosi Khama draping Kgosi Kgafela with a legendary leopard skin
Kgosi Khama draping Kgosi Kgafela with a legendary leopard skin

When Botswana gained independence in 1966, after close to century of British colonisation, not only did she inherit the Colonial laws, it also adopted Westminster political system. The system Botswana is still clinging to today. Isn’t it time, half a century after independence, that we upgrade our laws and institutions the Westminster way? Wonders BAME PIET

We use the First-Past-the-Post electoral system, which allows the party with majority elected members to automatically take  government. Assuming power is irrespective of the percentage of voters the majority party gets, as all it needs is 50 percent of the seats in Parliament.

The Westminster system has the House of Commons, an equivalent of Botswana’s House of National Assembly, or Parliament. Our colonial masters also have the House of Lords, which in our case, could be the Ntlo ya Dikgosi, which was for a long time before indigenising the name in the early 2000s  was known as House of Chiefs.

Editor's Comment
Congratulations Anicia Gaothuse!

The contest had 10 beautiful young girls as finalists and unfortunately only one could wear the crown.The judges picked Anicia Gaothuse. To all those who feel their contestant should have won ahead of Anicia for whatever reason, hardly; the judges found Anicia to be the best among the best, so desist from disrespecting our newly crowned queen on social media or anywhere else, for that matter! Each of the 10 beautiful young women had supporters...

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