13 Jun 2021

Principal elections officer in Maun, Mr Khumo Lebang, has underscored the need for Batswana to participate in the electoral process.

Speaking during a Party Liason Committee (PLC) meeting recently, he said participating in the electoral process was a key role for all citizens since it gave them a chance to express their views and be involved in making decisions on issues that affected them.

Mr Lebang explained that every Motswana had an obligation to protect and nurture the constitution of Botswana, which gave them the right to vote

Members of the PLC were also appraised on the delimitation process, which entailed dividing constituencies depending on the population. 

He reported that the exercise was conducted after every 10 years, which meant it should be conducted next year as the last one was done in 2012.

Mr Lebang, however, revealed that the exercise would not be conducted if the population census had not taken place. 

He said the population census billed for this year had been postponed to August next year.

Members were drilled on the importance of participating in the delimitation exercise so that their concerns/ideas could be taken on board. 

He said once the commission had submitted the report to the President, there was nowhere they could submit their views.

They were encouraged to participate in the coming delimitation exercise if they wanted changes in their areas.

Furthermore, Mr Lebang highlighted that the last delimitation exercise re-aligned some constituencies citing Chobe in which some villages such as Mababe, Khwai and Sankoyo were removed from the constituency and incorporated in Maun East.

The committee was informed that after the delimitation exercise, Independent Electoral Commission (IEC) would facilitate the demarcation exercise which entailed establishing and naming polling stations.

For their part, some members expressed concern that the delayed population census exercise could affect the electoral process and thus would result in putting IEC personnel under pressure.

Ms Bernadette Malala thanked the principal elections officer for the educative and informative presentation on the delimitation exercise noting that not all understood the process. ENDS