BPF confident of perfect UDC marriage
Tsaone Basimanebotlhe - Innocent Selatlhwa | Monday August 15, 2022 06:00
Some expressed delight at the union, while others expressed disappointment that they would be led by Duma Boko. For yet others, they thought it was a bad idea to have a large number of former BDP members led by former President Ian Khama joining the umbrella.
However, for the BPF and UDC leadership the marriage means that regime change is imminent. Previously opposition parties only managed to come together during the time when Khama was at the helm of the country.
Supported by elders and public service unions they formed the UDC ahead of the 2014 general elections. Khama was also behind the BDP’s first split and the offspring Botswana Movement for Democracy (BMD) led by Gomolemo Motswaledi were among the UDC founding parties. Even though Botswana Congress Party (BCP) was not part of the project, the opposition collective posed a serious threat to the Botswana Democratic Party (BDP). The BDP won 37 seats, the UDC got 17 while the BCP won only three.
Despite Khama and his troops leaving the BDP to form BPF ahead of the 2019 elections, the BDP increased its popular vote and garnered a seat more than in 2014. UDC won 11 seats, BPF won three constituencies while BMD’s offspring Alliance for Progressives (AP) won just one.
One cannot divorce BPF from the Khama’s family since that is the reason why it won Serowe constituencies while the UDC won constituencies such as Palapye, Mahalapye and Bobonong was due to both BPF and Khama's influence.
Currently former president Khama who is the patron of BPF is in exile at South Africa. After the general elections, he UDC, AP and BPF held a series of meetings before they eventually signed a memorandum of understanding in 2020.
Through the memorandum they made a commitment that between the years 2020 and the next general election in 2024, where a by-election is to be held, the contracting parties shall not contest against each other.
Going under the name Opposition Cooperation Forum, the three parties had 11 council seats to contest for in by elections. It would then come to the fore that as expected, it would not be easy to bring the parties together as members on the ground complained of being left out in making the decision to work together. This led to instances that where in at least three constituencies, both the BPF and UDC fielded candidates.
The fight for constituencies would finally come out in the open ahead of Bophirima council by election. The BCP would not have it and contested the ward independently with the support of AP while BPF rallied behind the UDC.
As matters stand, the BPF arrives in the UDC in the absence of the BCP representatives as their president Dumelang Saleshando and Secretary General Goretetse Kekgonegile have been suspended.
The BCP is certainly set to form an alliance with AP with whom it worked together since Bophirima and recently Moselewapula in Francistown. With the looming exit of the BCP from the UDC and the AP not looking to be joining, the BPF looks set to have enough room under the umbrella.
However, infighting within the BPF itself leaves room for surprises as there are some patriots who would rather not join the coalition under the new circumstance. While the BPF claims congress will make the final determination on its relationship with the UDC, the recent announcement by the UDC and the BPF about their union suggests it is something their patron Ian Khama wants and members are expected to toe the line. BPF Publicity Secretary Lawrence Ookeditse is of the view that the issue is only a storm in a tea cup they have to deal with as the BPF.
“There is a conflict which as the party leadership we are managing well. This misunderstanding cannot split our party and there is nothing wrong for some of our members to seek clarity. What matters now, is the bigger picture that we want to achieve as BPF.
We have been working with UDC in all bye-elections, so this is not new. In fact, the new development will help us to grow as a party. A lot of things have changed since 2019 general elections, therefore there was a need for us to introspect and find ways in which could help us to attain power,” Ookeditse said.
He also said once the party has agreed to keep on working with UDC, the members will have to do that, since parties are run by policies and principles that bind members to obey.
Ookeditse stated that the BPF cannot win government alone therefore it needs other opposition parties to change government. In addition, he said when there is change in any organisation there are those who will support the decision immediately and others that will want to resist change.
He, however, said what is usually important is for people to show those who have reservation on the matter the good side of things and assure them that the coalition would not swallow their party. He said again UDC when it attains power, it would institute programmes that will help in changing people’s lives.
The UDC are delighted to have BPF under their fold and see it as a step towards regime change. “The central issue at UDC is to where practically possible put all those who want change of government on one side to avoid vote splitting. That being the case, we believe having the BPF as our member will be consistent with what we are all about,” UDC Head of Communications Moeti Mohwasa said.