Election observers arrive

A delegation of 22 observers from the South Africa-based Electoral Institute of Southern African (EISA) arrived in Botswana on Tuesday in preparation for the country's weekend poll. On Saturday 552,890 registered voters are expected cast their ballots in Parliamentary and local government elections at one of 2,179 polling stations countrywide. A Southern Africa Development Community Parliamentary Forum team will also observe the poll, Botswana's eighth since independence from Britain in 1966. The parties contesting the general election include the ruling Botswana Democratic Party (BDP), a coalition led by the Botswana National Front, the National Democratic Front and the Botswana Congress Party. The outcome is in little doubt, with the BDP expected to scoop its eighth straight win, but of interest to political observers is how many of the 57 elected seats the opposition - touted as newly invigorated - can capture. EISA, a regional NGO, will be deploying seven teams in the capital, Gaborone, as well as Francistown, Maun, Jwaneng, Selibi-Phikwe and Lobatse. They are expected to meet with electoral stakeholders, including the Independent Electoral Commission, political parties and civil society organisations ahead of election day.