The chairperson of Ntlo ya Dikgosi has slammed the government for preferring parliament at the expense of the House of Chiefs.
Scheduled to attend Ntlo ya Dikgosi session and address the Chiefs’ concerns on Monday, only the Assistant Minister of Local Government, Botlogile Tshireletso, showed up, having been asked by the Minister of Defence, Justice and Security to represent him.
“We are concerned about this trend at which ministers do not attend Ntlo ya Dikgosi sessions although the proceedings have long been communicated to them. This has happened in the past and I registered my displeasure,” said Puso Gaborone, adding that “as much as parliament is important so is Ntlo ya Dikgosi”.
Tshireletso rubbed Gaborone the wrong when she said her cabinet colleague would not attend as he was busy preparing for the State of the Nation address by the President, scheduled for next week Monday.
This came to light during Question and Answer Time when the newly reinstated Ramadeluka Seretse did not appear to answer questions posed to his ministry by Ntlo ya Dikgosi members.
“This state of affairs is not good for the political health of our country and seems to continue unabated. But we would continue to raise alarm over this anomaly,” Gaborone said.
An advisory body to the government, Ntlo Ya Dikgosi is convinced the government is not taking them seriously as evidenced by the ministers’ persistent absences during their sessions.
During the last session, the same outcry was raised as ministers scheduled to address the Chiefs neither attended nor apologized for their absences.
In some cases, they did not even delegate their representatives to attend on their behalf.