- Party calls comprehensive legislation to provide guidance
- Emphasises levelling the playing field for all political players
SESUPO RANTSIMAKO
The Botswana Congress Party (BCP) has called the gazetting and scrutinising of a bill to ensure that political parties benefit equitably from the P34 million recently announced as set aside for funding them.
In a statement that followed the Minister of Finance Peggy Serame’s announcement of political party funding in the 2024/25 financial year, the BCP said key to using taxpayers’ money for political party funding is levelling the playing field for all political players.
It stated that it expects nothing less than comprehensive legislation to provide guidance on implementation of this development.
Comprehensive legislation
“A level playing field ensures that citizens get to fully appreciate the political parties that seek a mandate to govern from their policy proposals to their management of resources and governance processes,” said the BCP statement.
“The BCP therefore expects nothing less than comprehensive legislation to provide guidance on implementation of this very important milestone in our democracy.
“Such cannot be left to the dictates of a minister or cabinet to decide as and when they deem necessary. It would open the provision to abuse by those given the mandate to govern at any given time.
Checks and balances
“The BCP expects that a bill will be gazetted, having been subjected to comprehensive scrutiny, including submissions from civil society organisations, the labour movement and professional bodies such as the Law Society of Botswana to provide necessary checks and balances in our democracy.
“We state here, for the record, that we will contemptuously reject any attempt to use Batswana’s taxes to entrench disparities between competing political parties.”
In the spirit of levelling the playing field across Botswana’s political landscape, the BCP continued, it expects that the proposed bill will adopt principles of inclusivity, equity, and commitment to broaden and entrench democracy.
Women and the youth
“The bill should also include women and the youth who find it hard to make it in politics. Further, a multi-tied approach, where due consideration for components such as party administration, development of party programmes and election campaigns would be most effective in so far as strengthening political parties.”
Delivering the 2024/25 budget speech in Parliament recently, finance minister Serame announced introduction of political funding by the government but did not say how it will be rolled out.