15 Aug 2019

Vice President Mr Slumber Tsogwane has stated that active participation of dikgosi in party politics is prohibited.

Mr Tsogwane said on Tuesday during a kgotla meeting in Xhumo, stating that there were rules and policies providing guidance on how the institution of bogosi operated.

Dikgosi interested in participating in party politics, he said, were expected to vacate the seat and join politics.

He pointed out that active participation of chiefs in party politics would confused members of the society as that was against the rules governing them.

He said government respected dikgosi and highly regarded bogosi as an instrumental body in building a democratic government.

“There is no such thing as kgosikgolo in the constitution of Botswana,” he said. Mr Tsogwane stated that section 77 and 79 of the constitution clearly defined the roles of a kgosi and who qualified to be appointed to the position.

The vice president  further said  that any president appointed to the position deserved to be treated with respect as the leader of the country regardless of their place of origin.

On other issues, Mr Tsogwane  informed the residents of Xhumo that it was crucial for a country to form and maintain cordial relations with other countries.

He stated that work permits for those interested in investing in Botswana should be fast-tracked to allow them to set up businesses and ultimately  grow the economy.

The gesture, he said, could provide Batswana with an opportunity and platform to learn and benchmark from investors.

Mr Tsogwane further stated that the hunting ban had been lifted to control human/wildlife conflict to enable communities to benefit from hunting by allowing trusts to make profit from animal skins, tusks and hides.  

The vice president donated a computer set to the tribal office for use by dikgosi, hats to the dikgosi and blankets to the residents.

For his part, the Village Development Committee chairperson Mr Calfribird Bilingi decried that they had since been promised water tanks for supplying the village, but that had not effected to date.

Mr Bilingi expressed concern over lack of accommodation for teachers and also complained that Rakops Junior Secondary School buildings were dilapidated.

Concerning issues of health, Mr Bilingi requested a maternity wing at the health post.

One of the residents Mr Kebolaelwang Majujuma complained that he had applied for a borehole in 2011, but the application had not been approved. ENDS