Tabling the motion, Lefhoko said that ever since he entered Parliament in 1999 much has been said about empowering Batswana economically but to date nothing has changed. He reminded MPs of a 2002 Stakeholders Conference where ideas were shared on how best Batswana could be made to contribute to the economy of their country. He added that even former president Sir Ketumile Masire and the local business community visited Asian developed countries - Malaysia and Singapore among them, to see how citizens participate in the running of local economies.
Lefhoko said for Botswana to succeed in CEE she must move away from political expediency and have a policy that will produce results. "This policy is long overdue. We have long asked these questions and now we are demanding action," he emphasised. The MP said that political independence has no meaning if citizens are not economically independent. Lefhoko further warned that if economic power continues to be held by foreigners the trend is likely to influence the legislature, policy-making, the judiciary and even the civil service. He called for transfer of the economy into the hands of citizens through a model similar to South Africa's Black Economic Empowerment programme.
