Reatile: peacemaker turned usurper
Mompati Tlhankane | Monday June 19, 2023 06:00
Although the suspension was stayed by the High Court four days later, there are reports that Butale’s downfall had long been planned the moment Reatile took up the VP position.
It is said that Reatile’s sudden takeover as ‘acting president’ last week Monday was meant to clear the way for BPF patron Ian Khama. Former president Khama has made it clear that he wants to take over the presidency of the BPF, a party he helped form on the eve of the 2019 General Election. The BPF has since last year been going through a phase of political instability.
With former members of the BPF NEC such as Samson Moyo Guma and Caroline Lesang having resigned from the party, it was expected that the emergence of Reatile would perhaps bring peace to the troubled political outfit. In his first 24 days, Reatile presented himself as a man who would support Butale to bring warring factions together.
Even Reatile himself said as a member of the BPF, he only became involved in an effort to reconcile the differences which were apparent in the NEC. While former chief spy Isaac Kgosi among others had tried to reconcile the factions and failed, Reatile seemed like a perfect fit in a time of turmoil.
Reatile even arranged a meeting between some members of the BPF NEC and Khama in South Africa (SA). Although Butale did not attend the SA meeting because he had allegedly ‘refused’, the meeting was reported to have come into fruition and that the warring factions had finally decided to reconcile. Reatile continued to present himself as a man of peace.
At some point he was seen attending the Umbrella for Democratic Change (UDC) events on behalf of the BPF. After months on the sidelines, Khama managed to address the BPF members in a BPF rally in Serowe recently, thanks to Reatile’s intervention. Khama thanked Reatile and took an opportunity to lambast Butale in front of every BPF member at the said rally.
Two days after that rally, Reatile who claims he was authorised by Butale to convene the meeting, led an NEC meeting which ‘unlawfully’ suspended the leader. For those who had been watching the developments closely, it was not a surprise because Reatile is pro-Khama and the latter has recently made it clear that he does not get along with Butale. The latter’s sudden suspension showed that a lot of political machinations had been orchestrated behind his back. The BPF president did not know what hit him. Even in court recently, Reatile had the support of the two Serowe legislators Leepetswe Lesedi and Baratiwa Mathoothe while Butale was alone on the other side.
In his recent court affidavit, Reatile disclosed that immediately after his appointment, he attended the BPF events at Maunatlala, Palapye and Serowe. It is after these events where Butale allegedly got to trust his deputy and according to Reatile, the former Tati West legislator went on to engage him on the resolution of the BPF NEC to convene an NEC meeting on the first Monday of June 2023. “Butale further informed me that he will not be present at the NEC meeting and that he delegates me as his VP to preside and chair the NEC meeting. I duly accepted the delegation from Butale. I deny that the meeting of June 5, 2023 was unlawful.
The meeting was convened by Butale and further delegated me to chair the meeting in his absence. He cannot therefore, characterise the NEC meeting as unlawful. He cannot backtrack simply because he does not like the resolution of the NEC,” Reatile further claimed. Last Friday, the court gave a rule nisi order in favour of Butale but the parties will return to court on June 30 for final determination.
Among other issues that will be discussed before court is whether or not Reatile ignored Justice Matlhogonolo Phuthego’s April judgment which clearly indicated that no BPF NEC meeting should be convened without the authorisation of the BPF president. “The respondents are hereby interdicted and/or restrained from calling or holding any convocation or meeting without the calling of same by the first applicant, per the Botswana Patriotic Front Constitution,” reads part of Phuthego’s April 26 judgement. In his defence, Reatile claims he was not party to the proceedings before Phuthego and was not even a member of the NEC at the time the matter became before court. “At the time I was an ordinary member of the BPF.
I was not even aware of the judgement and orders granted save for what was available in the public domain. What was reported in the public domain was that the NEC was embroiled in a legal tussle before the High Court. Butale or any member of the NEC who was engaged in the litigation never served me with a copy of the judgement of Phuthego,” he said.
Reatile’s political career
Looking back, Reatile then member of the Botswana National Front (BNF) emerged in the 2004 General Election when he beat then Botswana Democratic Party (BDP) heavyweight and local government minister Michael Tshipinare. It was quite an impressive entrance to Parliament to beat a sitting MP and one of former president Festus Mogae’s trusted Cabinet ministers.
Then under the Ngwaketse West constituency (now Jwaneng-Mabutsane), Reatile managed to get 7,050 votes to Tshipinare’s 5,601 votes. In the 2009 General Election, Reatile still under the BNF defended his Ngwaketse West constituency getting 7,765 votes, thereby beating Olebetse Pule of the BDP who got 7,283 votes. In 2012 Reatile quit the BNF to become an independent MP briefly before defecting to the BDP that same year. Reatile contested the 2014 General Election under the BDP and for the first time in 10 years, he lost the constituency to Shawn Nthaile of the Umbrella for Democratic Change (UDC).
Nthaile got 6,613 votes while Reatile was right behind with 6,069. After losing big at the 2014 General Election, the BDP did not abandon him and he was nominated to become a specially elected councillor in his constituency and was later voted to become the Southern District Council chairperson. It looked like Reatile was never meant to miss the 11th Parliament and when the number of Specially Elected MPS was increased in 2016, Reatile alongside Bogolo Kenewendo benefited.
Reatile beat other heavyweights like the then BDP secretary-General (SG) Botsalo Ntuane, former Botswana Defence Force (BDF) commander, Tebogo Masire and Blacky Marole. In 2019 Reatile contested the General Election again under the BDP ticket and this time around he managed to get his revenge on Nthaile. Reatile got record 8,466 votes compared to Nthaile’s 5,466. Reatile managed to hold on in the ruling party until he was suspended in August 2020 for allegedly going against the BDP's caucus in Parliament and attacking its leadership in a radio interview.
The Jwaneng-Mabutsane MP was slapped with a letter of suspension for allegedly putting the name of the BDP into disrepute. Reatile’s suspension came after he voted with the opposition MPs in Parliament against the suspension of then Leader of opposition Dumelang Saleshando. Reatile would later state during a radio interview that he is against the Floor Crossing Bill. Following his suspension, 12 BDP councillors attacked him saying they are not happy with the way the MP has been delivering issues in Parley.
They said from Reatile’s attitude, it will always be difficult to advance BDP policies together. With growing rumours that the BDP was planning to expel him from the party, in December 2020 Reatile finally resigned from the ruling BDP with immediate effect. He left the BDP before the Floor Crossing Bill could be implemented. While some thought he would make his way back to the BNF, Reatile instead joined his former boss Khama’s BPF. Apart from being a well known Khama symphathiser, since Reatile joined the BPF he has not been involved much in the rumblings of the party until recently when he was appointed VP. After Butale’s court victory, Reatile said there is nothing political that should be solved by the courts. “Every political issue should be solved politically by the same organisation.
This will continue to be a back and forth issue as long as we continue to take political issues to court. When you let BPF members solve these issues at the elective congress they will resolve them once and for all. If we beat around the bush and not let party leaders take decisions this thing will still persist,” he said. Butale said the last congress was in 2019 and the party constitution requires an elective congress to be held every two years. “We failed to comply because of the COVID-19 pandemic so now is the time to hold an elective congress,” he concluded.