10 Jul 2016

President Lt Gen. Dr Seretse Khama Ian Khama has urged students to take their education seriously and refrain from ill practices such as drugs and alcohol abuse.

Speaking at the 7^th Botswana Examination Council (BEC) Excellence Awards on Friday, President Khama said the ill acts disturb the peace and order in schools and could not be allowed to continue.

“We need the support of parents and all stakeholders to decisively deal with this matter,” he said.

He said the Setswana culture was based on Botho, with self-discipline and respect a central premise.

“It is therefore very important that as we develop and embrace new concepts, ideas and cultures, we do not lose sight of our foundation and values,” he said.

He added that as Botswana celebrates its 50^th anniversary this year, the nation should embrace and live the values espoused by the pioneers.

He said Batswana should strive to achieve more in an honourable, meticulous, reliable, responsible and dependable way to advance the country, adding that “these are basics of life.” 

He said there were no short cuts in life, and that a concoction induced high was temporary, eventually becoming addictive, expensive and life threatening.

“My appeal to you and parents is that as you only have one life, don’t destroy it,” he said.

President Khama said they should use their brains to determine the difference between being irresponsible and engaging in harmful behaviour. 

He said parents should ensure they know where their children were at all times, especially during weekends where they go out to all night sessions driving around in combis, binge drinking, the consequences which could be HIV/AIDS and other related ailments.

President Khama said it was important that they instill discipline in their lives which entails self-control and commitment, perseverance and doing the right things in a constant manner.

“We can achieve more as a society through doing the right things, the right way, at the right time, and what better time to inculcate such good behavioural traits than when they are still young,” he said.

President Khama congratulated the 36 learners from primary, junior and senior secondary schools, saying opportunities for further education has been made possible by their hard work and scholarly efforts that they have made to reach the highest levels of performance.

President Khama also commended “teachers and school leaders who have put in place the correct environment for them to thrive.”

He called upon the award recipients to select careers that would assist in continuing to propel Botswana forward towards Vision 2036 and beyond.

President Khama said the government recognises the role teachers play in the education of Batswana hence they were awarded with presidential medals at the national Teacher’s Day awards held in Kang in June.

He, however, said he was concerned by the declining performance of learners as the JC and PSLE results in 2015 were more or less the same as the previous year while the BGCSE results showed a slight improvement.

President Khama also noted that the BCE excellence awards have had a positive impact on performances, and that the top 10 BGCSE achievers have performed better than their colleagues in 2014.

John Gitonga of Lotsane Senior School received the golden star award for being the BGCSE overall top achiever, and it was handed to him by President Khama.

Khumo Letlhogile of Ledumang Secondary School received the minister’s award from the Minister of Education and Skills Development for overall achiever while Kesegofetse Rauwe of Materspei College received the BEC’s chairperson’s award. ENDS