Kgathi makes the show
Innocent Selatlhwa | Monday August 15, 2022 06:00
Kgathi showed his mettle as he was seemingly the most active individual candidate lobbying for support during the youth congress in his backyard of Bobonong.
While he was kicked out of a meeting with Vice President Slumber Tsogwane’s supporters in Francistown, Kgathi was hard at work in Bobonong canvassing for votes from any democrat who cared to listen to him. According to the former Bobonong legislator, the BDP 2019 general election manifesto promised Batswana a better life under its leadership.
He said they have, following their victory in 2019, been working hard as a party and government, to ensure that they implement and fulfill the promises made to electorate. “To this end, the BD-led government has amended a good number of pieces of legislation and policies in order to enable inclusion and participatory involvement in governance and the economy.
We have decided to ensure that we bring all democrats together to support the government in this exercise. I have set myself a target to focus on the following, amongst other things; revive and energise all party structures and enhance party mobilisation in preparation for the 2024 General Elections; ensure and enforce discipline, accountability, good ethical conduct amongst the party members and its leadership; market and promote the good reputation deriving from the over 50 years rule by the BDP-led government by telling a good story that the BDP is for empowerment and development; it is still relevant and determined to take Botswana and Batswana forward and ensure that the Central Committee and the party at large guides government policy,” he said.
Kgathi further promises to undertake confidence-building activities, promote good public perception and restore political hope amongst the members and the general public. “I will also promote transparency and inner party democracy and good governance; promote collective responsibility, consultation, and feedback at all levels of the party structures; establish party performance monitoring mechanism; promote continuity and progressive leadership development within the party; ensure that the party school commences where the new and younger party cadres will benefit from the older and experienced cadres and promote the BDP as a regional, continental and global political force to reckon with," said Kgathi.
Furthermore, Kgathi believes as the new secretary-general, he would be bringing vast experience in serving the party. Such experience, he says comes from his long public service career, having gone through the ranks of educational leadership as a teacher, senior teacher, deputy school head and eventually director of Sport and Recreation. Politically, Kgati has previously served the party in various positions, which include having been a member of the central committee sub-committees of communications, national strategy and currently as the deputy secretary general (2017-2022).
During his role as a member of the central committee, he has been assigned as a member of the central committee responsible for the Kweneng East and Francistown regions. This is in addition to having been MP for 15 years of which 13 years was spent as a government minister in the ministries of Agriculture, Youth, Sport and Culture, Presidential Affairs and Defence, Justice and Security.