Ian Khama, a retired army general, stepped down as president of Botswana Saturday, handing the world’s second-biggest diamond-rich country to his deputy Mokgweetsi Masisi after a decade at the helm of affairs.
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The leader expected to be sworn in today Sunday in accordance with the nation’s constitution with due consultation with their political party.
The 65-year-old British born bachelor has been at the helm of the country since 2008, the country has been well managed, he decided it is time for somebody else to take the nation forward. what a honourable thing to do.
Social media responds and people from Botswana seems happy with the development. One user welcomes the fifth president and his wife
While another user expresses his delight and pride for his country.
It was a very peaceful and honourable change of power without any internal or external intervention, this move put to shame the recent events in Zimbabwe and South Africa where former leaders were shamefully forced out of office.
Jacob Zuma was forced out by his own political party for corruption, incompetence and a whole lot of other reason including bad governance. The case was similar in Zimbabwe, Robert Mugabe ruined the whole country, runs it like a private business but his political party, his deputy and the military were happy with it for many years until the feud between Grace Mugabe and Emmerson Mnangagwa which led to his sacking.
Mokgweetsi Masisi, 55, will inherit one of Africa’s wealthiest and best-governed nations but will have an uphill task of reducing the economy’s over dependence on diamonds and atracting more foreign investment. Aside from gems and probably little tourism the country has no other means of generating foreign exchange.
There are concerns in some quaters about Masisi experience and competence in running a governmenet. “I am not sure about his competency in as far as the economy is concerned, but if he has the respect of his ministers then he should be able to make them deliver,” said political analyst Ndulamo Anthony Morima.
Masisi, a trained teacher who has also worked for the United Nations Children’s Fund as an education project officer for eight years until 2003, was elected lawmaker in 2009. He served in the president’s office as a minister of public affairs from 2011 until 2014 when Khama named him minister of education, a post he held until appointed vice president last year.
We wish President Mokgweetsi Masisi the very best of luck.