BCP hangs on
Mompati Tlhankane | Monday January 23, 2023 06:00
This is inspite of the fact national conference in July 2022 resolved to give the Umbrella for Democratic Change (UDC) six months to address important governance issues troubling the coalition and the period has elapsed and the issues are still unresolved.
Last week the BCP revealed to this publication that its grievances have not been addressed and therefore its formal departure from the UDC is quite imminent. Asked to state its position now that the deadline has elapsed, BCP spokesperson Dr Mpho Pheko yesterday said the decision was made by the highest decision-making body which is the BCP Conference.
She therefore said they are looking at the next level decision-making body which is the BCP Central committee to make a final decision on their stay or exit. “The BCP Central committee will meet before end of January to deliberate on the matter. We will communicate with stakeholders post the CC meeting,” she briefly said. Pheko also said they have not received any communication from the UDC regarding their matters and resolutions now that the deadline has passed.
Last week Pheko told Mmegi that they are leaving the UDC because the governance and constitutional grievances that led to the suspension of the BCP from the UDC have not been addressed. Pheko insists that the Boko-led UDC is still falling short of the values and principles of good governance.
“For the BCP to work again with the UDC after the January 19 deadline, the words of the BNF should match their actions. They say one thing but do the opposite. The central committee of the BCP will have a meeting after January 19 to chart the way forward regarding working with the UDC again,” Pheko stated.
Pheko added that the BCP holds principles of good governance and constitutionalism in high regard and it does not believe that governance issues are subservient to other issues that bedevil the nation.
“Our well considered position is that insisting on the practice and observance of established principles of good governance and constitutionalism, and prosecuting the struggle for the creation of job opportunities and other services essential for the decent upkeep of our nation, are not mutually exclusive undertakings”, she said.