The President of the Botswana Congress Party (BCP), Dumelang Saleshando, has attacked President Ian Khama, saying that his failure to heed the call of public servants’ welfare is slowly drawing the country into a calamity of poverty.
Giving the stance of the BCP on the recent two-months national strike by the public servants, he told the BCP Annual National Congress in Francistown that the President’s position that public employees should compare themselves to the unemployed and the poor before they advocate for their needs is ridiculous.
“Where in the world are workers’ conditions equated to the conditions of the poor and the unemployed as a basis of collective bargaining,” he asked.
Khama had continuously verbally lashed the public employees during their national strike to desist from selfishness and take the plight of the poor and the underprivileged to heart.
However, Saleshando went on to tell the Congress that Khama’s illogical position should not be entertained as it will erode the standard of decent living, measured in terms of the poverty levels.
He continued to say that the President wants to be the trade union for the unemployed and the poor while they, as BCP, want to provide decent jobs for all citizens hence their support for the recent national strike.
Saleshando attacked Khama, saying that he wants to sustain poverty and unemployment so that his donations could remain relevant.
“We must all be concerned that during the national strike, the President blatantly refused dialogue with all national leaders who were interested in assisting the impasse, instead he continued making statements in Kgotla meetings that did not draw the workers representatives and the Department of Public Service Management (DPSM) any closer,” he said.
Saleshando concluded by saying that the country needs a President who can demonstrate his compassion and a need to accommodate all citizens in times of challenges.
