LETLHOGILE MPUANG
The government will not waste time and resources in trying to counter former president Ian Khama’s undeserved crusade against President Mokgweetsi Masisi and his government, the Permanent Secretary in the Office of the President (PSP), Carter Morupisi, has said.
In recent weeks, Khama has stepped up his efforts of decampaigning Masisi as an individual, as well as his government and the ruling Botswana Democratic Party (BDP).
Khama was recently on BBC News and SABC News criticizing Masisi’s leadership style at both party and government levels. At an inaugural meeting of the Botswana Patriotic Front (BPF) in Gaborone over the weekend, Khama said he would not stop telling the world about how Masisi was leading the country down the drain.
However, speaking to The Botswana Gazette yesterday (Monday), Morupisi said government couldn’t be bothered by Khama’s views but would invest its energy and resources on priority areas of the country. “We can’t dwell much on him (Khama) because we have better things to do,” he said.
“We won’t waste our time trying to find ways to counter what he goes around saying. It would be an absolute waste of time. We know what we are doing and we will not suddenly panic because of what someone is saying. There are also independent organisations that are mandated to assess us as countries. Until they raise a concern, there is no need to panic.”
Khama is alleged to have made direct requests to commanders of the Botswana Defence Force (BDF) and the Botswana Police Services (BPS) to use their aircraft. While Khama denies this, Morupisi says there is a series of letters to prove it.
“He has failed to follow procedure,” he said. “Instead of writing to OP for a request, he would write directly to the BDF or the police. We have letters to prove this, and that is why some of his requests were turned down. Those people only take orders from the Commander-in-Chief, which is the sitting president. He would even at times write to district commissioners to prepare for his visits without addressing us as the OP.”
Meanwhile, Khama told his supporters on Saturday that he will soon take legal action against the government for refusing him access to public facilities. According to the former president and his newfangled party, they were denied access to Tsholofelo Hall for their meeting in accordance with an instruction that he should be prevented from using government resources.
He told the BPF meeting that he would take the government to court for over this. “Ke Motswana hela jaaka mongwe le mongwe,” he protested.
Reached for comment, Morupusi said there was never such an instruction.