Residents of Maun have told the delimitation commission that the population of Maun and its catchment areas, currently with two constituencies –has grown and therefore needs more parliamentary representation.
Currently Maun has two constituencies, Maun East and Maun West where the former has a population of 50 785 people while the latter has a population of 50 412 people.
It is for this reason that the residents told the commission at a consultative meeting to get their views on Wednesday that they want the area demarcated to three or four constituencies.
One residents, Monei Ndiane argued that the population of Maun has grown and has to be divided into three constituencies to allow for the easy distribution of services. He said dividing the constituency will also make it easy for members of parliament to advocate represent their constituents better.
He suggested Maun North, should be added to the already existing constituencies to cover areas such as Sedie ward, Boro/Senonnori, Bojanala ward, Shorobe Village, Sankoyo, Disana and Khwai/Mababe.
Another resident, Bernadette Malala, also stressed the need to demarcate Maun into three constituencies, noting that the residents have different cultures and practices. She expressed that this will enable members of parliament to advocate for the challenges faced by the residents taking into consideration the specific issues affecting them.
Shashe Village Development Committee (VDC) Chairperson, Bahentse Rena suggested that Maun be demarcated to have constituencies for easy management. He highlighted that during the Covid-19 vaccination process it was difficult for the health workers to vaccinate the residents adequately due to congestion at council wards.
Another resident, Ontlametse Motshwariemang pointed that Maun is faced with a lot of challenges such as poverty and poor results within the schools. He argued that the challenges are caused by the fact that Maun has grown exponentially, therefore dividing it into four constituencies could limit the challenges faced by the residents.
The mandate of the commission is to look into the possibility of increasing constituencies and council wards in the country. It also aligns boundaries taking into account population density, boundaries of tribal territories and administrative districts, natural community interests, means of communication and geographical features. The last delimitation which is held after every 10 years was conducted in 2013.
