EDITORIAL NOTE: SABC Digital News notes the concerns raised about our headline saying Botswana extends state of emergency to six months. We have modified our headline.
Botswana’s parliament has endorsed President Mokgwetsi Masisi’s request to extend the state of emergency to six months. The country is currently on a 28-day lockdown.
Masisi says this will help curb the spread of COVID-19 in the landlocked country. However, members of the opposition have raised their dissatisfaction, saying that it will essentially give President Masisi more powers, which may lead him to abuse the rights of Batswana.
Botswana has confirmed seven more cases of COVID-19, bringing the total to 13. One of the new cases is a nurse, who screened parliamentarians for the virus during the special parliamentary sitting on Wednesday. A concern has been raised that with its limited resources, Botswana’s medical resources will not be able to cope should the number of cases increase further.
President Mokgweetsi Masisi explains: “We have been told how many hospitals and other resources we have in the country. We know that we are less developed as a country. We are not like other developed countries. Are we saying we should rather burry people or save lives while we still can.”
The opposition remains sceptical. “Director of health services Mr Speaker, for the second time, is very clear. Let us now hear who qualifies for home quarantine. We will be advised on what to do, if we have this virus, so that we don’t infect others. Some of us might have been infected already,” Dumelang Saleshando of the Umbrella For Democratic Change says.
Wynter Molotsi of the Alliance for Progressives says Masisi could have waited for the end of the 28-day lockdown, and then extended the period, only if things did not change.
“We are already In the State of Emergency. And Section 17(1) that the President used does not restrict him from extending it after the 21 day period. He can even go beyond the six months that he’s asking for, through those 21 day periods.”
Tshekedi Khama of Botswana Patriotic Front says Masisi cannot be trusted. “His excellency flouted his own quarantine time. He flouted his own regulations against travel, to Namibia. If the fourth industrial revolution, Sir has already started, you would have communicated by cellphone, by smart phone.”
On the second day of the special sitting of Botswana’s parliament, it was reported that a nurse that screened MPs for the virus tested positive. As a result, MP’s will be quarantined for the next fourteen days.
Botswana Director for Public Health, Dr Malaki Tshipayagae explains: “All of us will have to be quarantined. Those who would opt for self-quarantine can do so, as long as they stay far from their families. Those who are unable to self-quarantine, will be provided with a mandatory quarantine place.”
