Anti-corruption protesters in Botswana demand action from new government

Gaborone, Botswana — 

Botswana’s caller leader, President Duma Boko, has promised zero tolerance for graft successful his administration. The pledge comes arsenic scores of Botswana residents articulation successful youth-led anti-corruption protests, urging the authorities to prosecute erstwhile officials accused of looting nationalist coffers.

Activist Setlhomo Tshwanelang mobilized the protests implicit alleged corruption wrong authorities enterprises.

He said much demonstrations are connected the mode and the caller authorities indispensable prosecute anyone who stole nationalist funds.

Montshwari Mogopane, an researcher for Botswana’s Directorate connected Corruption and Economic Crime, said his bureau has seen an summation successful the fig of reported cases of corruption.

“Of course, we person a occupation of corruption successful the country. This is reflected by the fig of cases we person nether investigations,” Mogopane said. “The reports amusement an summation successful the fig of cases that we are receiving. There is that request to really sharpen our swords and combat corruption.”

President Boko said determination volition beryllium an audit of the authorities coffers to spot if immoderate corruption occurred. His authorities has reported the state is broke.

Boko told caller members of Cabinet connected Monday that nether his administration, determination volition beryllium nary country for graft.

“There volition beryllium nary corruption, firstly due to the fact that I expect that you volition uphold the highest standard, and secondly, much clinically, we volition enactment precise robust institutions and practices that volition guarantee that determination is nary corruption due to the fact that we person to bash it, truthful that adjacent arsenic we constabulary ourselves, we indispensable ever cognize determination are institutions and structures that are exerting power and providing oversight successful ensuring that we each enactment connected the consecutive and narrow,” helium said.

Boko took bureau connected November 1, aft his party, the Umbrella for Democratic Change, defeated the Botswana Democratic Party, which had ruled the state since independency successful 1966.

Boko's predecessor, Mokgweetsi Masisi, maintains helium has not been progressive successful immoderate amerciable enactment and volition avail himself for questioning successful lawsuit of immoderate probe against his erstwhile administration.