BPF terminates Bosilong’s membership
Tsaone Basimanebotlhe | Monday November 13, 2023 06:00
In a letter dated November 7, 2023, BPF secretary-general (SG), Lawrence Ookeditse, informed Bosilong that the party has decided to terminate his membership “with immediate effect”. Ookeditse specified that Bosilong’s membership termination was on account of the latter having been an unreliable cadre of the movement; and therefore, a liability to the BPF’s efforts for regime change. “You have on numerous occasions displayed reactionary tendencies and you continue to do the same. Some of these tendencies you have even displayed under oath in court papers,” Ookeditse wrote. Ookeditse further stated in the letter that the executive meeting of November 7, 2023, authorised by Clause 15.4.2 of the BPF constitution empowered the National Executive Committee (NEC) to make any decision it deems necessary to uphold the constitution of the party, its rules and regulations. Additionally, the SG pointed out that as Bosilong may be aware, a political party is a voluntary association.
The letter also states that when his endeavours and pursuits prove to be at cross purposes with its goals and agenda, then membership to the association may be terminated. Bosilong was requested to return all property of the BPF in his possession to the party Secretariat with immediate effect. On November 3, 2023, Bosilong filed the matter before the court in which he wanted it to declare that the election for the presidency of the BPF held at a congress of September 16-17, 2023 was unlawful and thereby be set aside. In his court papers, Bosilong said the BPF should be directed to hold an election for the presidency of the party prior to the 2024 General Election with him (Bosilong) as a candidate. Bosilong participated as an opposing candidate for the position of party president at a congress that was held on September 16 to 17, 2023. Bosilong said Reatile was a candidate for the elections and yet he appeared to be heavily involved in processes and operations relating to the elections. “That in so being involved, Reatile and his cronies proceeded to advance arbitrary suspensions against persons who they believed were not aligned to their preferred candidates for success in the elections,” he alleged. He said in effecting the above suspensions, Reatile created an environment of intimidation and harassment of delegates who were to vote at the congress. He said delegates were thereby not free to vote without influence or oppression and that there were no voters roll to review prior to Election Day. When all circumstances are considered, Bosilong maintains that the elections were pre-determined, while the rest of the events were simply ceremonious.
However, prior to Congress, Bosilong had written a letter to then party Secretary General Tshekedi Khama complaining that the elections would not be free and fair because he was being disadvantaged on a lot of things. Bosilong, who was a member of the outgoing BPF National Executive Committee (NEC) led by Reatile, said he wrote a ‘formal letter’ to state his interest in contesting for the presidency of the party but the correspondence was ignored and labelled a ‘scribbled note’ by Reatile. He complained that Reatile’s team had released its lobby list contrary to BPF NEC’s regulations. Bosilong, a few hours left before the elections, also complained that the voter's roll is not yet availed to him as a presidential candidate to appreciate and make the inspection. Bosilong had made various demands where he further alleged that the elections were already polluted. “This worries me a lot more so that I don’t have access to the office as they are and this puts me on a negative side, and also does not promote the principle of fair and free elections precisely being in the opposition where the same character is displayed by the current ruling party which we want to remove in power due to various reasons and elections rigging being one of them,” Bosilong highlighted in the letter.