11 Feb 2014

Member of Parliament for Mahalapye East, Ms Botlogile Tshireletso has praised social safety nets saying they aimed at developing Batswana.

Contributing to the 2014/15 national budget proposals, Ms Tshireletso said she could not understand why the programmes could be criticised as they were geared towards assisting Batswana in their daily lives.

Ms Tshireletso said she had met beneficiaries of such programmes who were now making a living out of projects funded by government.

Programmes such as Ipelegeng, she said, were meant to offer temporary relief adding that the intention of government was to create employment but the scheme enabled Batswana to have something to lean on while still looking for permanent employment.

The Mahalapye legislator said the scheme had not only been hailed in rural areas, but people in urban areas had also embraced it as they were able to provide food for themselves and their families.

She said at the moment, Batswana paid P5 for medical facilities despite the costs incurred in restoring their health adding that some have been taken to other countries for operation.

Ms Tshireletso said the government also takes care of orphaned children saying each child receives a P500 monthly food basket while needy students are also assisted with school uniforms and toiletry.

Home based care people; she said are given P600 monthly food basket as they are on special diet while old aged pensioners are given monthly allowances and also destitute people are provided with housing and monthly food basket.

The Mahalapye East legislator, who is also the Assistant Minister of Local Government and Rural Development, said some Batswana had been able to graduate from poverty due to the programmes hence the amount allocated to her ministry should not just be dismissed as it went a long way in assisting Batswana.

She said youths had also benefited from programmes such as Youth Development Fund and had been able to sustain their lives.

For her part, Serowe South MP Dr Pelonomi Venson-Moitoi said government should be praised for not reducing its work force or cut salaries when it was faced with financial difficulties emanating from the global economic recession.

Dr Venson-Moitoi said instead of having small development projects scattered all over the country, there could be one major project in one area and this would be beneficial as more people would be employed and it would also be sustainable. 

She said this would enable MPs to share resources as they could agree on which area to benefit and which one to benefit later.

The MP said Batswana should know that all developments undertaken anywhere in the country are theirs as they could be employed to work at the Sekgoma Memorial Hospital in Serowe or the envisaged leather park in Lobatse.

Dr Venson-Moitoi who is also the Minister of Education and Skills Development said the role of education is not only on her ministry’s hands, saying some teachers have been able to produce good results despite the challenges.

She said one head teacher at a public primary school in Moiyabana,  was determined to change the fortunes of her school and although she faced challenges from lack of water to dilapidated school buildings, she roped in parents and together, they were able to turn around the results and has got position two in her area.

The school did not have electricity, desks and even toilets forcing students to relieve themselves behind the facilities. She said MPs should advocate for maintenance saying buildings would  dilapidate unless they are properly maintained.  

The two legislators meanwhile welcomed the new Francistown West MP, Dr Habaudi Hubona saying the number of female representatives had increased although it had not yet reached satisfactory levels. ENDS