11 Sep 2024

- Six prospective parliamentary candidates competing for Selebi Phikwe East constituency have vowed to resuscitate the town’s economy following the closure of BCL mine which was the economic backbone of the town for many years.

Selebi Phikwe East previously led by Mr Kgoberego Nkawana under the Umbrella for Democratic Change (UDC) ticket will be contested by Botswana Democratic Party (BDP), Botswana Congress Party (BCP), Botswana Socialist Party (BSP), Botswana Patriotic Front (BPF), UDC and an independent Candidate.

Canvasing for votes during the Radio Botswana debate held at Meepong JSS on Tuesday, Mr Nkawana, who will contest under the BCP ticket, urged residents to give him another chance to represent them.

He said one of the areas he was going to give utmost attention to was resuscitation of the town’s economy in the interest of employment creation.

He said BCP was the only party with sound plans for Batswana hence deserved another chance, to move the constituency forward.

Mr Nkawana said closure of the BCL mine in 2016, impoverished the people on Selebi Phikwe because many lost their jobs while some closed businesses that benefited from the mine’s operations.

Lack of employment in the town, he said, had also eroded the purchasing power of residents, which affected a lot of businesses operating in town including the informal sector.

BDP’s prospective candidate, Mr Leonard Mojuta said BDP was the only party that had the capacity and capability to run the country. He acknowledged that the BCL mine closure might have impacted negatively on the economy of Selebi Phikwe but said the BDP established SPEDU to drive economic diversification to avoid relying solely on mining.

He said SPEDU was doing well in facilitating businesses that invested in the region but needed to be allocated sufficient budget to implement their mandate effectively.

He said given the chance to represent the constituency, he would advocate for SPEDU to be allocated sufficient funds to lure investors to the region and create more employment.

Mr Mojuta who is also former mayor of Selebi Phikwe explained that the town had been designated a Special Economic Zone, which would grow the manufacturing sector and promote more value chains resulting in more employment opportunities for Batswana.

Dr Mokubung Mokubung of the BPF said Selebi Phikwe, which used to be a vibrant town had the ability to rise again.

He said should his party win, it would consider turning the training centre at BCL into a specialised university of mining engineering. Dr Mokubung who is also the former chief executive officer of SPEDU stated that the proposed training centre would have a ripple effect on the economy of the town resulting in knowledge acquisition as well as employment creation.

He also emphasised the need to promote mining of other minerals such as uranium and lithium in addition to copper-nickel, adding that more industries dealing with processing of these minerals could be set up.

Mr Ofentse Ithuteng of BSP was of the view that the closure of the mine  exacerbated unemployment in Selebi Phikwe.

He said poverty was rife because of lack of employment resulting in many societal problems.

Mr Ithuteng urged the people of Selebi Phikwe East to vote for him, to help address challenges faced by the mining town.

 Independent candidate, Mr Johane Odubile vowed to use P300 000 of his salary to help resuscitate the economy of Selebi Phikwe.

He said as someone who was already involved in community work, he had a good reputation of donating to the community.

Mr Odubile also vowed to help mophane worm harvestors by transporting them and providing them with food and water during harvesting.

UDC’s prospective candidate, Mr Tebogo Venson argued that his party had a better plan to grow the economy of Selebi Phikwe and create employment opportunities for Batswana.

If voted into power, he said, UDC would introduce a living wage of P4 000 and create up to 500 000 jobs in five years as well as increase students allowance to P2 500.

Mr Venson said improving health and education sectors was important to better the lives of Batswana. ENDS