12 Mar 2025

The National Assembly on Tuesday approved a sum of P104 million as the budget for the Independent Electoral Commission (IEC) for the 2025-26 financial year, endorsing the proposal presented by the Minister for State President, Mr Moeti Mohwasa.
The recurrent budget- logistical costs for maintenance and running costs, travel and general publicity as well as salaries and pensions cover the bulk of the budget.
Mr Mohwasa explained that it was an important period in the immediate aftermath of the general elections for the IEC to engage in organisational development and planning for the next five years of the electoral cycle.
He said government was looking into amending the constitution and the Electoral Act, to among others things, introduce a Parliamentary Select Committee which would have a role in the appointment of IEC Commissioners Secretary.
“We will also amend various sections of the Electoral Act to smoothen electoral processes and address the issue of transparency and fully operationalise the function of the Commission as a truly independent constitutional entity,” Mr Mohwasa said.
Members of Parliament (MPs) expressed various views on the IEC. MP for Gaborone South, Mr Nelson Ramaotwana said the Umbrella for Democratic Change (UDC) sought  IEC to be independent and transparent.
This included ensuring that the IEC was empowered to hire its own staff and can operate independently of the executive or central government, he said.
Tlokweng MP, Mr Phenyo Segokgo said UDC should prepare to present to Parliament the electoral reforms they had been calling for while in opposition.
He said such reforms, including the counting of ballots at polling stations, the use of transparent ballot boxes, and a directly elected President were necessary for enhancing democracy.
He added that UDC believed in a hybrid system that mixed the first past the post constituency system and proportional representation, which he said would assist in the better representation of women, the disabled and other historically marginalised groups.
Mr Segokgo also called for local government elections to be held separately from parliamentary general elections, with two ballot boxes availed, one for the election of a ward councillor and the other for a town mayor or district governor.
Maun East legislator, Mr Goretetse Kekgonegile called for a paradigm shift to ensure, free, fair, credible and transparent elections. He said measures should be put in place to ensure that the Directorate of Intelligence and Security Services (DISS) does not meddle in the country’s electoral processes.
Mr Kekgonegile said the automation of the electoral processes needed to be clarified and hoped that this could include ensuring that people could register for elections digitally instead of having to travel long distances to both register and vote.
Moreover, he called for political party funding to be implemented and for external ballots to be counted immediately from the external polling stations, with only the results sent, instead of the cumbersome process of collecting ballots and then shipping them to Botswana before counting.
Mr Mabuse Pule, Kgatleng East MP said he supported reforms to the Electoral Act, including what constituted a spoilt vote.
Serowe South MP, Mr Leepetswe Lesedi asked for more polling stations to be availed in wider constituencies, saying the burden of elections lied mostly on the politicians, who campaign and ensured voters get to polling stations. ENDS