04 Apr 2016

The village of Maokane in Southern District was, on Thursday, abuzz with activities as residents commemorated Botswana’s first general elections.

Speaking at the commemoration, Kgosi Isaac Banyaditse of Maokane said even though Batswana raised their national flag for the first time in September, the first national elections were held on March 31, 1965. 

He said the latter was an important date for Botswana and its people as it had an equally significant history.

“Even though most Batswana only recognise September 30 as independence day, March 31 also marks an important milestone in our country,” he said.

He said they came up with the concept to commemorate the date of the first national elections as a way of remembrance and information sharing. 

Addressing the residents on behalf of the second president of Botswana, Mr Fraser Tlhoiwe said prior to Botswana gaining independence in 1966, the country was under England laws until the Legislative Council was formed in 1961. 

He said the council came up with a committee that was responsible for drafting the Botswana constitution to take independence from England, among other roles.

“This independence ended up with two steps; neelano ya puso (self-rule) which lasted for 18 months from March 1965-September 30th 1966 before the attainment of full independence,” he explained.

He further noted that it was in March 1965, that the 33 constituencies each elected a person to represent them in Parliament and these elections were contested by political parties. He said since then the country has been successfully conducting elections. 

The principal elections officer Mr Isaac Keogotsitse commended Maokane residents for remembering the day, which was  significance for Botswana and its people.  Ends