05 Sep 2016

Government is considering formulating a policy that would help guide transfer of public officers, Assistant Minister for Presidential Affairs and Public Administration Mr Dikgang Makgalemele has said.
Addressing kgotla meetings in Boatlaname and Shadishadi in the Kweneng district recently, minister Makgalemele said government’s intervention was necessary to curb the appalling state of affairs where certain individuals want to work in urban areas at the expense of others.
He said policy formulation will entail among others the length of period one should stay in a given area as well as to have the right to investigate medical reports provided regularly by officers opposing transfers.
The minister’s response was based on concerns raised by Shadishadi residents about overstaying of officers in one place something that impacted on services delivery.
Boatlaname residents also told the minister that their village had not benefited from the Economic Stimulus Programme. However the minister explained to them that benefit was not only in the form of infrastructure but labour intensive.
The residents also reiterated their concern for electricity connection in their village to help drive the village’s economic growth.
Boatlaname Kgosi Rudolph Mojalemotho said electricity connection in the village was long overdue, something that he said impacted negatively on the village’s economic activities.
Although he was grateful that Boatlaname was among villages in the Sub district that had benefited in terms of developments, he said most of such developments were affected by lack of electricity.
Kgosi Mojalemotho applauded Civil and National Registration office and Botswana Post for their regular provision of up to standard services to residents, but challenged offices like Youth, LIMID and Gender to come forth and ensure provision of services to benefit eligible beneficiaries in the area.
Kgosi also called for relevant authorities to consider revisiting arrangement made for people in the area to get services from Letlhakeng as opposed to Molepolole or Lentsweletau saying the arrangement was costly because they travelled long distances for service acquisition.
Still at the meeting, the Molepolole Administrative Authority senior assistant council secretary Mr Gofaone Kgabanyane told residents that an arrangement has since been made to have Boatlaname, Lephepe, Sojwe and Shadishadi villages serviced from Molepolole as it was more convenient than travelling to Letlhakeng.
Meanwhile Shadishadi Village Development Committee chairperson Mr Raseiphepi Keforilwe decried constant water shortage in the area accusing the Water Utilities Cooperation for not doing enough to arrest the situation.
He said the area was now dependent on water bowsers and expressed unhappiness over the arrangement stating that in most cases, they were often left without potable water for a long time while the situation only normalised during the minister’s visits.
They also requested that the committee be allowed to use the old Remote Area Development Programme boarding Hostel to benefit Shadishadi community rather than leaving the village to dilapidate completely.
The minister asked both offices of the Council Secretary and the District Commissioner responsible for Molepolole Administrative Authority to addreess the issue within two weeks . ENDS