02 Mar 2017

President Lt Gen. Dr Seretse Khama Ian Khama has assured residents of Khudumelapye in the Letlhakeng sub-district of his support on their request that the road passing through their village from Letlhakeng to Kaudwane be tarred.

Speaking at a kgotla meeting at Khudumelapye on March 2, President Khama said he was aware of their request and told them that even though the road had not been included in the National Development Plan 11, government might consider it provided the economy improved.

He however, said the challenge was that the demand for tarred roads was high across the country as Batswana were buying vehicles in high numbers.

“Last year alone we had 40 000 new vehicle registrations, and overall we have about 800 000 registered vehicles against a population of just two million. This then calls for more tarmac roads in the country and government cannot cope with tarring roads against the rate at which vehicles are bought because a single kilometre of tarred road costs around P5 million,” he said.

He also informed them that traffic volume was among considerations of whether a road should be tarred.

On other issues, President Khama assured them that he would ensure that the issue of high water shortage in the village was addressed as promised.

He told them that should there be more delay in addressing the problem, the area Member of Parliament would inform his office so that the issue could be sped up.

President Khama was responding to some residents' complaints about shortage of water in the village as well as the need to tar the road that passes through their village from Letlhakeng to Kaudwane.

Minister of Land Management, Water and Sanitation Services, Mr Prince Maele said water shortage in the village was caused by the fact that one of the two boreholes that supplied the village dried up in December last year while the remaining one had low yield of just three cubic metres a day against the village’s requirement of 120 cubic metres per day.

Mr Maele said that the other borehole was also contaminated and its water was not fit for human consumption.

As such, he said the ministry had identified two boreholes at Malwelwe and Botlhapatlou and that their village would be connected to them beginning of the next financial year.

He said in the meantime, they had negotiated with a private borehole owner in the area that the village be connected to his borehole as a short term solution while government still awaited  for funds for next financial year.

Mr Isaac Moepeng from the Ministry of Transport and Communications informed residents that the Letlhakeng-Kaudwane road was not included in NDP 11 because of lack of funds, but the current arrangement was that the road was graded every three months. ENDS