Nasha and Khama in a bitter war

President Ian Khama has denied the Speaker of the National Assembly Dr Margret Nasha denied permission to be part of the SADC delegation that will be observing the upcoming South African general elections, sources have told Botswana Guardian.

According to reliable sources the Southern African Development Community (SADC) Parliamentary Forum had appointed Nasha to be one of the overseers at the SA general election.

Despite this the government is said to have used the green book to refuse to grant her permission to be part of the delegation. The government’s contention is that Botswana has taken a contrarian position not to participate in SADC election observer missions. Botswana took the stand following the decision by the regional body not to accede to Botswana’s demands that the 2013 Zimbabwean elections should be audited following allegations of rigging by the opposition Movement for Democratic Change.

According to Sources Nasha intends to challenge the government the decision not to allow her to be part of the observer mission. Sources say that she has since approached the vice president Ponatshego Kedikilwe for intervention.

Contacted for a comment of the issue government spokesperson Jeff Ramsay said he was in no position to comment on the matter and that Nasha is the only one who could give details on the issue.

Opposition MPs view the latest development as a way of reigning in on Nasha who recently penned a book critical of President Khama’s government. Efforts to speak to Nasha this week were unsuccessful.