When this paper went to bed over the weekend, all indications were that the public service strike that had gone on for a week before the Easter recess would by all intents and purposes continue after the Holidays.
We have no reason to believe that either party ÔÇô Government on one hand and the unions on the other, are looking forward to resolving the situation.
For their part, the Government has been all over state media, painting a somewhat rosy picture that everything is as close to normal as it can be, notwithstanding the thousands of workers that have joined the call for a ten day strike.
For their part, the trade unions, now wealthier than they were a few years ago, have resorted to flighting paid-up adverts in the private media, effectively goading their members to carry on with the struggle, to borrow their favourite word.
It is our view that it did not have to come this far.
It is also our view that it is not yet too late to resolve the impasse.
What needs to happen is to open a meaningful dialogue that promotes talking to each other rather than the current situation where we have the opposing sides literally talking at each other.
It certainly does not help anyone to pretend that everything is normal when people who expect services from Government ministries and departments get turned away because civil servants are not at work.
Permanent Secretaries have this past week been queuing up outside Botswana Television, one after the other, proclaiming how their ministries have been unscathed by the strike.
That to us is childish, to say the least.
In fact, we were utterly shocked to see that the head of the civil service, Eric Molale, who is Permanent Secretary to the President, is the chief writer of this plot.
Instead of using his position and proximity to power to urge for dialogue, the PSP kickstarted the circus when he went on BTV to say everything was on order.
How could that be?
Even when operating at full throttle, the Botswana civil service is notorious for its below standard levels of efficiency.
That situation is worse in such ministries like that of health, local government and that of works.
How then do grown up men like Molale, Vice President PHK Kedikilwe, and Minister Mokgweetsi Masisi expect us to believe them when they say despite the strike, the situation has never been better.
The level of patronage has never been more appalling.
There is no question that the economy of Botswana is reeling from the effects of this strike.
Although they are not a part of it, the private sector is no doubt paying a very heavy price because the structure of Botswana’s economy is such that the public sector sprawls almost every sphere of the economy.
The inconvenience ultimately extends to our trading partners, who are caught in the middle of a battle they absolutely cannot understand, a battle they are not a part of, a battle they have neither been warned about nor participated in its creation.
The upshot of it, especially in the long-term is that a perception will be created that Botswana is an unreliable trading partner, because of a failure to meet our obligations during the strike.
We should not be surprised if our trade partners look for alternative routes to do business as a way of circumventing Botswana’s costly and, of course, unreliable route.
Not for the first time we call on President Ian Khama to now get personally involved in the negotiations with trade unions.
While in the past we have called on him to appoint his Deputy as his representative, it is our feeling now that he has allowed the situation to escalate to levels where only him, with the powers vested on him as leader of cabinet, can make instant decisions without having to confer and defer.
To the leadership of trade unions, we say good leadership is demonstrated by a willingness and ability to negotiate one’s way out of difficult situations.
Trying to humiliate the Government or defeat them, as it were, can only harden attitudes.
It is, therefore, important that even as they have an upper hand and at least for now seem to be enjoying massive public support and goodwill, the unions show maturity by keeping an open mind, including making concessions to a Government that has its back against the wall.
