20 Mar 2016

The Member of Parliament (MP) for Shashe West Mr Fidelis Molao has urged the Ministry of Defence, Justice and Security to develop strategies of combating the growing incidents of cyber-crime.

When debating the ministry’s budget proposal for the 2016/17 financial year on Wednesday, Mr Molao said the problem was rampant in social media.

He said he had personally fallen a victim of cyber-crime when a Facebook account was developed using his name and picture to spread unsavory comments to other Facebook users.

He also appealed to the Ministry of Defence, Justice and Security to build more police stations and increase police visibility around the country, particularly in his constituency’s Marapong village so as to reduce crime.

The MP for Mochudi East Mr Isaac Davids thanked the ministry for the proposed police station in Mmathubudukwane village in his constituency. He asked the government to improve conditions of service for police officers by increasing their salaries, accommodation, and providing them with more vehicles. He criticised the ministry’s proposal to spend P2.6 billion on military equipment including aircraft, stating that it would be “a waste of money.”

The MP for Gabane-Mmankgodi Major General Pius Mokgware urged the ministry to develop a national defence strategy which will inform how the army should be resourced.

He said the strategy would enable government to understand the capabilities needed for the army, adding that he was against spending in army equipment while there was no strategy guiding such spending. “The absence of a national defence strategy makes it difficult for the country to analyase its threats which leads government to have a big budget for the army without knowing the capabilities it wants for the army,” he said.

Major Gen. Mokgware further said the conditions of service for police officers, army officers, and prison officers should be improved, adding that their salaries should be increased because they are too low.
He also complained about police officers’ uniform saying it is of a low quality.

Tati West MP Mr Biggie Butale supported the amount of money earmarked for purchase of military equipment saying the army was the insurance of national security; therefore it should be capacicated to defend the country’s territory.
He also asked for villages near the border in his constituency to be provided with mobile police camps. Ends