Africa-Press – Botswana. Members of Ntlo ya Dikgosi have opposed Kgosi Oscar Mosielele’s motion which called for members to be allowed to dress according to their culture and not be restricted to formal wear.
Tabling his motion, Kgosi Mosielele said for Dikgosi to wear their diverse ethnic wear that would be a way of showing love, respect and regard to each other as well as acknowledging their traditional values.
“The traditional clothes is basically a symbol of belongingness to the nation and display of culture of each tribe,” he said.
Kgosi Mosielele said that would also serve as education to other people, indicating different cultural attires of tribes as some use animal skins while others prefer leteisi among others.
However Kgosi Mosielele said he was not against the idea of wearing formal wear as it made an individual disciplined and inculcated a sense of team spirit among employees.
Arguing against the motion, Kgosi Disho Ndhowe of Okavango region said even though it was a good idea since traditional attire represented national identity, he was afraid that it would not look presentable in the House.
He said wearing formal wear was local and international and therefore everyone was on the same page and that helped in increasing unity amongst the nation.
In response, the Assistant Minister for State President Mr Dumezweni Mthimkhulu said the government did not have any jurisdiction to prescribe attire for members of Ntlo ya Dikgosi and they were at liberty to choose what they wanted to wear.
About 19 members of Ntlo ya Dikgosi voted against the motion while five were for the motion and five abstained.
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