08 Feb 2022

There wasn’t much peculiarity in the suggestions of the people of Otse and Mogobane yesterday as they made known their views and recommended changes to the constitution.

However, one old man’s views came out in sharp contrast to everybody else’s.

Interestingly, the old man spoke with so much authority that despite their misgivings, the people clung to his every word like a magnet.

The old man, 84-year-old Lawrence Magosi warned Batswana should desist from insisting that tribal and territorial boundaries should be shifted or redrawn, as that may destabilise the country.

Mr Magosi, who displayed exceptional knowledge of the constitution during his presentation to the commission castigated those who felt they were treated as lesser beings, simply because they were not members of ‘major’ tribes.

He said their complaint was misplaced as the demarcation of territories was done to safeguard peace.

“Before independence, Botswana was a British High Commission territory that was governed through directives from Britain. Our transition from a British protectorate to an independent republic was established on the premise that the eight main tribes would form a republic and maintain their territories as they were before independence,” he said.

He argued therefore that based on this fact it would be unfortunate for the so called minority tribes to assume the status of the eight main tribes given they were refugees fleeing conflict from their places of origin and were accommodated by the eight main tribes in their respective territories, depending on where they entered Botswana’s boundaries.

“When sections 77, 78 and 79 were amended, it was agreed that larger territories should give away some of their land to accommodate minority tribes. These include Ghanzi, North East, Chobe and Kgalagadi Districts,” he said. This was done to prevent conflict in the future, he noted.

“The commission must remember the decolonisation treaty when making its final submissions on the bogosi and tribal territories issue,” he said.
He argued Batswana worked hard to build both the nation and the country’s infrastructure, and it would be foolhardy of anyone to want to undo all the hard work by trying to redefine tribal boundaries.”

Mr Magosi also sent a stern warning to those who advocated appointment of a KgosiKgolo for all Batswana.

“ Botswana has never been a monarch. It is a nation formed by the eight main tribes who agreed to form a republic with equal status,” He said.

As for the electoral system, Mr Magosi contended there was “no need to fix it if it ain’t broken.”  Botswana’s electoral system had so far served the country very well, and it would be a mistake to amend it, he warned. ENDS