He reasoned that the country could get even more international accolades
for such a move, stating that it was a way of recognizing the strength of
other political parties, even if they do not manage to win elections. He
asserted that the Independent Electoral Commission (IEC) was not
performing very well and that the question of voter apathy is being
glossed over. He said voter apathy is not being investigated to establish
its fundamental causes. However Mmegi can reveal that in March 2002, the
IEC published a report on voter apathy. The report was done in conjunction
with the Democracy Research project of the University of Botswana.
On other issues, Koma urged the ruling Botswana Democratic Party not to
get to excited about the international praise the country is receiving
because there are still a lot of challenges ahead. Poverty was one major
challenge as a lot of Batswana were still staying in mud houses which were
periodically swept away by rain, whilst water shortages are still
unresolved. On the proposed second university, he lamented that a lot of
MPs were concerned about its location and were campaigning for it to be
built in their constituencies. He said the real question was what kind of
university was contemplated and suggested that it must focus on science
and technology, which are areas of scarce skills in the country. He called
for building of more technical colleges to bridge the gap in the market.
He advised the government to include Christian and moral education in the
school curriculum as a way of stemming the tide against HIV/AIDS.
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