BCP’s biggest test
Chakalisa Dube | Monday July 18, 2022 06:00
Until last year, the BCP looked like an entity trying to get its acts together after a disastrous performance at the 2014 general elections.
The party posted a much improved performance at the 2019 general elections where it contested under the Umbrella for Democratic Change (UDC) banner.
For the first time since he ascended to the BCP presidency, Dumelang Saleshando finds himself leading an entity that is characterised by severe instability.
There is no doubt that Saleshando enjoys much following in the BCP but what is more worrisome is that some of his once trusted lieutenants now deeply loathe him.
They continue to rebel against him on key party positions.
Five Members of Parliament (MPs) namely David Tshere, Never Tshabang, Kenny Kapinga, Dithapelo Keorapetse and Onneetse Ramogapi have often opposed Saleshando and the party executive publicly.
What has exactly sparked dissent from the MPs is that they do not agree with the manner their leader wants UDC problems to be tackled. Saleshando has been vocal against governance issues in the UDC.
Speaking publicly against the UDC has earned him a suspension from the coalition along with BCP secretary-general, Goretetse Kekgokengile. Other partners in the UDC, Botswana People’s Party (BPP) and Botswana National Front (BNF) deny that there are governance challenges in the coalition.
Saleshando also lost his position as the Leader of Opposition (LoO) to Keorapetse. It is widely known that the other BCP MPs who have been defiant against Saleshando endorsed Keorapetse at a recent caucus they had been instructed not attend by the BCP. The four MPs along with Keorapetse have since been slapped with suspensions.
It is inevitable that BCP members will use the conference to endorse the decision to ditch the UDC in favour of working with the Alliance for Progressives (AP) at the 2024 general elections.
The BCP has for some time through its leader, Saleshando, signalled that it wants out of the coalition. The BCP wants out of the UDC because there is no proper governance.
The decision to leave the UDC will certainly be met without sheer resistance because Saleshando and other key BCP leaders have toured the country in recent weeks and the feedback they have got is that the party should leave the UDC.
The conference will also inevitably be faced with another key decision of whether to endorse the expulsion of the recently suspended MPs or not. To neutrals this might be a setback for the BCP because the five MPs are considered quality characters and their expulsion without considering any form of reconciliation would be catastrophic to the party.
On the flip side, some BCP diehards believe that the decision of the five MPs to attend a UDC caucus against the will of their mother party was an act of gross indiscipline and does not warrant any form of pardoning. That is why there is a swelling opinion that the most notable verdict that would highly likely be reached by the conference will be expulsion. Should the development to expel the five MPs come to pass, some BCP diehards would regard it as a clear statement that they members should toe the line.
Yesterday, BCP spokesperson Mpho Pheko told Mmegi that amongst the key things that the party will deliberate on is the fate of the five suspended MPs. She also added that the party will be faced with a mammoth task of deciding if it should remain in the UDC or not.
“I do not want to predetermine the decision of the conference. Other items that will be determined is the overall state of the party,” Pheko said.