19 Nov 2013

Kgatleng West MP, Mr Gilbert Mangole, has said chiefs must be given a chance to exercise their powers and address the social ills in the country.

Mr Mangole was responding to President Lt Gen. Seretse Khama Ian Khama’s State-of-the-Nation Address in Parliament on November 18.  For peace and serenity to prevail in the society, Mr Mangole said chiefs should be given the powers to instill discipline within their own territories.

Although he acknowledged the efforts of Botswana Police Service, he said the police were overwhelmed with a lot of issues. Therefore, he said chiefs should be allowed to take control of their own villages and address all the social ills within their respective communities.

Furthermore, he said, President Khama in his speech said “our democracy has never been stronger or more vibrant.” However, Mr Mangole said this was farfetched, as democracy in Botswana was lacking. If democracy prevailed in Botswana, Mr Mangole said all the districts in Botswana would be at equal level in terms of developments.

Currently, he said some districts, such as Kgatleng district, were lagging behind in terms of developments, whilst some were far more developed. He cited as an example, some roads in Kgatleng district like in Kgomodiatshaba, which he said were very bad.

In addition, Kgatleng West MP said Leshibitse’s clinic’s maternity wing was not electrified either, adding that the Deborah Retief Memorial Hospital also needed to be either renovated or moved to another place, away from where it was currently located. These things, he said were wrong as they gave people residing in such areas an impression that their leaders were failing to deliver. ENDS