19 Feb 2025

The executive must put in place mechanisms to reduce wastage in government funds, Member of Parliament of Serowe West, Mr Onalepelo Kedikilwe said when responding to the budget speech yesterday.

He said since government introduced per diem for local trips, it has been abused with allegations that some government officers were now engaging in unnecessary travels.

He said even services that could be done telephonically or through mail have now resulted with some government officials going on unnecessary trips just for the sake of earning per diem, therefore wasting funds.

Mr Kedikilwe also raised concerns about delays in maintenance of government facilities, citing Sekgoma Memorial Hospital in Serowe as one of the facilities affected, with roof leakages during the rainy season.

He said health facilities were affected by acute shortage of amenities like bandages and needles, and patients sometimes had to buy for themselves.

Mr Kedikilwe was of the view that though the budget was done under careful consideration and prioritised areas with urgent need, it would still fail to address urgent needs of health facilities.

The MP was also concerned that major roads in the constituency were not in good condition to transport patients on emergencies.

He said the condition of schools was also a challenge. He said schools with boarding facilities such as Dimajwe and Mmashoro were congested with boarding students, adding that of recent Dimajwe school was plagued with diarrhoea outbreak and congestion of students made it difficult to control the situation.

Mr Kedikilwe said Mmashoro Junior Secondary School was dilapidated, therefore not habitable, adding there was a shortage of 23 teachers at the school .

He said the non-functioning SMARTBOTS internet connectivity worsened shortage of hard copy text books, since even e-learning materials could no longer be accessed. ENDS