There’s been a momentous election in Africa, Botswana to be exact. Not heard about it? Don’t be surprised. The British and US media have all but ignored the story or got it wrong in the run-up. Even the BBC barely mentioned it though they bang on about Israel to such a degree you’d think the war was in Guernsey instead of Gaza.
On 30 October, Botswana held a general election as they have every five years since independence from Britain in 1966. Of all the countries in Africa, it’s the only one that’s never had a coup or a period of autocratic rule. But since 1966, the Botswana Democratic Party (BDP) has won every time.
80 per cent of adults in Botswana believe there is corruption at the highest level of government
No surprise given a gerrymander that works in their favour and scant attention paid to the vote itself. In Zimbabwe, Britain goes rightly moggy over rigged elections.
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