Tsogwane plays ‘Russian roulette’ at Bophirima
Ryder Gabathuse | Monday April 11, 2022 06:00
Just out of the blues, Tsogwane, who is also BDP chairperson told the party’s campaign rally, “if you are not going to vote for our woman candidate Onkemetse Mothei, that will be akin to committing Gender Based Violence (GBV).”
The Botswana National Front Women’s League president, Bonang Nkoane whose party is contesting tomorrow’s by-election under the ticket of the Umbrella for Democratic Change (UDC) does not take kindly to the VP’s utterances and strongly feels that Tsogwane chose to trivialise such a traumatising plague like GBV.
“Look, Tsogwane has lowered the dignity of his party candidate who happens to be a woman and even that of the BDP if he cannot treat GBV with the seriousness it deserves,” declared Nkoane this week.
Equally, the Botswana Congress Party (BCP spokesperson Mpho Pheko, who is also a woman politician, finds it wrong for Tsogwane to have taken such a sensitive issue for a joke, if at all he was joking.
“GBV is an extremely painful experience. It’s manipulative, unfair and irresponsible for anyone in Tsogwane’s position to make such utterances,” declared the worried Pheko in an interview with Mmegi.
She was insistent that Tsogwane should do the honourable thing and withdraw the statement.
University of Botswana (UB) lecturer in politics and administrative studies, Adam Mfundisi concurs that the VP was playing Russian roulette on the plight of women and girls in Botswana.
“This is political rhetoric which has stooped too low and need to be condemned by civil society organisations particularly those dealing with the Gender Based Violence scourge. We should not take this statement lightly because it comes from the second in command of the country. It reflects the BDP philosophy carried out throughout the political history of Botswana,” Mfundisi told Mmegi in his response to a questionnaire.
The party has not taken seriously the plight of women in Botswana having failed to develop evidence-based policies to deal with GBV even within the political outfit. The BDP has been afflicted with allegations of GBV of a sexual nature particularly during political activities including congresses and seminars.
Added the political analyst: “The political leadership has failed to take decisive actions to nip the scourge in the bud. It has paid lip service as exemplified by the casual and irresponsible statement attributed to the VP. Exemplary leadership is not reflected in the statement of the VP during campaigns in a by-election.”
The BDP Women group is quiet because of the politics of patronage. VP position is guaranteed, but his behaviour is not proportionate to the statement made, which erodes public confidence in him.
“He must earn respect through measured statements rather than reckless ones as posited. Political leaders must earn respect of the voters by behaving in accordance with the highest standards expected of them. Political will and commitment have been lacking within the BDP leadership partially due to the thinking displayed by the VP,” Mfundisi said.
He noted that the BDP and its leadership have failed to enact progressive legislations to empower women in all spheres of life. In the political sphere, they have failed to introduce political reforms to propel women emancipation from GBV and other social ills.
As a governing party, Mfundisi said the BDP has the power to introduce policies to protect women from any form of violence. To the UB academic, words matter, particularly from the VP. The BDP has not distanced itself from the outrageous statement devoid of sanity and substance.
In effect, two women candidates are vying for the council position.
“Why is the BDP candidate so special to require support if people are against GBV? I read some article that posited that ' ... power attracts ruthless and narcissistic people with a severe lack of empathy and conscience'. The VP embodies this description,” he added.
He further posited: “Dark triad leaders like the VP are manipulative and dishonest. They are impulsive, manipulative and believe others are gullible and foolish.“
In summation, Mfundisi strongly believes that the VP does not possess leadership skills and emotional intelligence, which would lure voters to follow his position.
“His statement speaks louder to his political deficiencies as a statesman. The President should be worried about his VP’s poor performance in every sphere of politics. Political rhetoric must be measured and designed to achieve some positive desirables,” he concluded.