Opposition slams Khama on international meetings

CHAKALISA DUBE
Staff Writer | Sunday May 26, 2013 00:00

'You are given seven to 10 minutes to speak and then you come back home, and you say is it worth flying all that way and spending all that money for seven minutes? ... Is it going to make a difference?

And with all those other heads of state speaking, who's listening at the end of the day?' The remarks have earned the wrath of the opposition with Lucas responding that: 'Khama lacks sound leadership qualities. How does a state President make such remarks if at all he made them? The President must get his priorities right. He must understand that attending regional and international meetings such as the UN Summit with other leaders is not all about making speeches. Such summits avail Botswana an opportunity to network with other countries. Forums such as the UN Summit also help the country to strengthen its bilateral relations with other nations. Khama should stop being so self-centred,' Mohwasa said.

Lucas expressed the same sentiments saying that  Khama is not taking his job seriously. 'I am not surprised by Khama's remarks if at all he made them.

He has not taken his international obligations seriously since taking over as president. He rarely attends international gatherings. What we expect from the president of the country is for him to act as the face or spokesperson of the country. We are not an island and we are in a globalised world. The President must take part in regional and international meetings to put Botswana's views across on issues of international concern,' he said. He stated that Botswana stands to reap trade and economic benefits if Khama attends international meetings. 'When Khama attends international meetings he can use his position as the spokesperson of the country to source ideas and build relations that can help us improve on issues of trade, commerce and economic relations as a country,' he said.

But government spokesperson, Jeff Ramsay is quick to defend Khama's attitude towards international meetings. 'Each president has his or her own personal judgement. Also it does not mean that if the president does not attend the UN Summit or any international meeting, the country is not represented at all in such specific forum. Someone is designated to attend such a meeting,' he said.

He added that attending such meetings is situational. 'When (Festus) Mogae was president, he used to attend the UN Summit and other international meetings. Mogae used forums such as the UN meetings to present Botswana's case on HIV/AIDS and ask for funds to deal with the virus. We were losing many people to the virus by then,' he stated.

Khama is yet to attend the annual UN General Assembly five years after becoming president.