BCP leadership forum consequential
Mompati Tlhankane | Monday May 29, 2023 06:00
The Dumelang Saleshando- led party had to watch in dismay as their once would be partners, Alliance for Progressives (AP), dumped them to start talks with the Umbrella for Democratic Change (UDC).
They have been estranged from their parent coalition, the UDC, over governance issues amongst others. The BCP had longed to leave the UDC but are stuck because quitting the coalition they joined in 2017 would trigger by-elections. They have lost all recent by-elections to the UDC while on the other side they are continuing to lose their councillors to the Umbrella.
Their numbers in Parliament have reduced after expelling four of their key Members of Parliament (MP) at last year’s national congress. Saleshando, who is the BCP president, and secretary-general Goretetse Kekgonegile are currently suspended indefinitely by the UDC. Overall, the BCP is faced with a grim outlook and they have since revealed that the Palapye Leadership Forum this weekend will be a pretty consequential event for the party that was formed in 1998. The forum is expected to serve as a powerful catalyst for leaders of the party to develop solutions to existing problems and introduce new strategies as the general election year nears.
The BCP has made it clear that they won’t contest the 2024 General Election under the UDC but with limited options after AP’s withdrawal, questions about the possibility of being on their own at next year’s polls has grown louder in recent weeks. In an interview this week BCP spokesperson, Mpho Pheko, said the weekend leadership forum will accord the party leadership an opportunity to reflect on the state of the party and the political landscape in general. “As you may recall, there is an ongoing realignment of forces within the opposition.
The narrative around that realignment has somewhat been dominated by the resignation of councillors from the BCP in response to a crass UDC inducement strategy,” she told Mmegi. “This is by no means the only dimension of this realignment. There are more substantive issues around this realignment, for instance, principles and values around good democratic governance and their centrality to the creation of an effective government.” Pheko also indicated that the forum will reflect on their strategies and goals for next year’s elections. She said the BCP will reflect on what differentiates them from other parties and how they make the contrasts clear for Batswana. “We emphasise here and now that we are the party of good democratic governance.
That means inviolable commitment to rule of law (constitutionalism), democracy, human rights, economic and social justice, competent government, transparency, accountability. We will re reaffirm our commitment to these principles and reflect on how we send the message to Batswana that good democratic governance is the foundation of a successful government and that regime change at any cost is reckless and dangerous,” Pheko said. She also disclosed that the BCP will begin to reflect on the broad contours of their strategy for socioeconomic transformation, taking into account contemporary development challenges, drivers of change, and opportunities.
“Naturally, at the core of our transformation agenda is good democratic governance, recognition that our people are our single most important resource, and that our most urgent challenge is to build a sustainably fast-paced and future ready high-wage economy that leverages our natural capital and modern technologies to accelerate productivity and external competitiveness,” she said.
She added they will also prepare for an equally consequential national conference in July, which will be held in Tutume. Pheko said both the leadership forum and the national conference will show the nation that they are a very strong party and that they are a very distinct qualitative proposition from the others. “We will map directions on a number of issues such contours of socioeconomic transformation and strategic goals to 2024,” she concluded.