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All-Party meeting proceed without opposition
WAME SELEPENG
7/28/2004 12:21:16 AM (GMT +2)
ATTORNEY General Ian Kirby has said that the decisions made by the All-Party Conference meeting yesterday are lawful despite a boycott by the main opposition parties. Contrary to claims that the meeting was not legitimate because of the boycott, Presidential Affairs and Public Administration Minister Daniel Kwelagobe said that Kirby had clarified that this was not the case. At a press conference after the meeting, Kwelagobe - who is also the Botswana Democratic Party (BDP) secretary general - said that Kirby had informed them that there is no procedure laid down in the Constitution governing the meeting of the All-Party Conference.
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 He added that the attorney general said that the Constitution does not prescribe the quorum for the All-Party Conference, and while attendance by all parties is desirable, it is not compulsory. However, the opposition parties that boycotted the meeting – which was called to choose members of the Independent Electoral Commission (IEC) - have maintained that the meeting lacked legitimacy. Edward Mpoloka, the national organising secretary for the Botswana Peoples Party (BPP), questioned the legitimacy of the meeting and said that Kwelagobe was “out of order” to claim otherwise. He added that the minister’s remarks that the All-Party Conference would go ahead with the appointment of Commissioners for the IEC despite the boycott showed that “he is misinformed”. Mpoloka said that the involvement of opposition parties in the election of Commissioners is a legal requirement, which leaves no room for ministerial whims. He said the non-participation of opposition parties would render the choice of the Commissioners illegal and put the credibility of the IEC and the entire election process into question.
Leader of the New Democratic Front (NDF), Dick Bayford, said selection of the Commissioners at yesterday’s All-Party Conference was “unlawful”. He said that he had thought the selection would not go ahead and rather be left to the Judicial Service Commission (JSE). Bayford said the selected Commissioners would not have the blessing of the opposition parties. He said the NDF intends to bring the unlawfulness of the IEC to the attention of international observers during the upcoming general elections. Yesterday’s meeting was boycotted by the Botswana National Front (BNF), the Botswana People’s Party (BPP), the Botswana Congress Party (BCP) the Botswana Alliance Movement (BAM) and the New Democratic Front (NDF) on the grounds that the ruling party was using them to rubberstamp their own decisions. This followed government’s rejection of all opposition recommendations of the All-Party Conference that was held four years back. However, the Botswana Labour Party (BLP) and the MELS Political Movement broke ranks with the opposition and attended yesterday’s meeting at which 13 names were selected for submission to the Judicial Service Commission. The JSC is charged with choosing the IEC Commissioners from the 13 names. The Commission can also make its own selection in terms of Section 65 A (2) of the Constitution.
The parties that attended the meeting reached an accord about the importance of the All-Party Conference. They said that the forum could be used for constructive inter-party discussions. They agreed that the All-Party Conference should be nurtured, and that it should meet regularly.
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