Africa-Press – Botswana. The Minister for States President has made a clarion call to the business community in Francistown to make a meaningful contribution towards a conducive policing environment.
Mr Moeti Mohwasa suggested, at the strategic meeting with Business Botswana in Francistown on Wednesday, that such could be achieved by setting up a contribution fund. As things stand, Minister Mohwasa relayed that government could not go it alone due to many competing needs and depleted fiscus. He thus requested action.
“We, therefore, need to turn to the business community and to the public in general to assist. Last week, Business Botswana handed over about P15 million in cash and in-kind to desilt Segoditshane river and seal potholes,” he said in appreciation, noting the overwhelming nature of work by the police, which included such things as certifying essential documents that were outside the remit of the police service. He therefore called for all to rise and intervene.
If the business communities in Gaborone and Maun can do it, the business community in Francistown can also do it, he said. The minister decried the sorry state of many police stations across the country, which he opined needed a facelift.
“We have a mandate of rendering a service, which essentially means securing you and your properties and also ensuring you are served in a proper environment. The current state of our police stations is neither welcoming nor uplifting. Even police accommodation is deplorable despite the many sacrifices the men and women in uniform make to ensure the security of the communities,” he said.
While the business community seeks to maximise profits, there is also a social obligation to promote peace and security. Contributing to police welfare is one way of achieving such, thereby creating a thriving business environment. Ms Babe Makwinja, the chairperson of Business Botswana Francistown Charter, was pleased that the business community in Francistown had made significant progress towards achieving a safe and secure community through their numerous contributions.
She was hopeful that with the anticipated opening of Tati mine, the business community of Francistown would come alive and further contribute to the honourable course. This, Makwinja said was despite the many challenges that the business community faced, including late payment by the government for services rendered.
“Let us meet, open the fund as the Francistown business community and see how we can help each other and the community,” she said.
A retired police officer, now in the travel and tours as well as security business, Mr Motsholathebe Mothibi acknowledged the need for the business community to intervene and assist in the initiative to give police stations within the Francistown policing area a facelift.
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