The contentious 100, 000 jobs
Friday, November 03, 2023 | 220 Views |
![Mokgweetsi Masisi](https://cdn4.premiumread.com/?url=https://www.mmegi.bw/mmegi/uploads/images/2023/11/03/91504.jpg&w=800&q=72&f=jpg&t=1)
Mokgweetsi Masisi
Masisi presented his first SONA on November 5, 2018 with an expansive agenda. But he revealed then that he had made several policy pronouncements that are primarily meant to address, as a matter of urgency, the twin problems of poverty and unemployment particularly amongst young people. Masisi, however, is still confronting the unemployment challenges as he presents his sixth SONA this Monday.
Despite the unemployment rate slightly dropping from 26% last year to 25.4% this year, many critics have often labelled Masisi’s yearly speech the usual ‘November ritual’. COVID-19 has obviously exacerbated the divide between those who are employed and those who are unemployed but Masisi’s numbers tell a different story than the reality on the ground.
The BDP as a party known to have ample resources has always held its primaries well in time, but this time around that was not the case. The first leg of the primaries was held last weekend, with the final leg being billed for the coming weekend. This time around, the BDP failed to shine in its primary elections. The elections were chaotic; most if not all polling stations didn't open at the specified time of 6am. Loyal BDP members braved the...