BCP quintet reduces the gender gap
Mompati Tlhankane | Tuesday January 23, 2024 09:21
While the BCP president Dumelang Saleshando admits that five out of 61 constituencies is not enough, energised by the fact that the BCP chief campaigner for the General Election is a woman, the five candidates are expected to inspire even more women candidates at both Parliament and council levels. Though women make up more than 50% of the population, the five according to the BCP are expected to work towards encouraging women who are underrepresented in public office. Lack of interest in politics by women has also been a setback, something the BCP Women’s League (BCPWL) aimed to address.
Before the recent unveiling of the five, the BCP had long committed to women’s representation, making a provision in the party’s constitution that all structures should have mandatory 30% women representation. This was later extended to leadership structures in Parliament and council seats.
Unity Dow - Kgatleng West
Specially Elected Member of Parliament (SEMP) Unity Dow is new at the BCP after dumping the ruling Botswana Democratic Party (BCP) for the lime movement last year. Dow’s 2024 candidacy for some time was uncertain because she arrived at the BCP in November right after the party held primary elections in the various constituencies including Kgatleng.
With Kgatleng’s initial two constituencies increased to three by the Delimitation Commission, Dow was allocated her very own constituency being Kgatleng West (formerly Mochudi West).
Looking back at her political career, Dow, a former judge, joined politics in 2012 when she vied for a legislative seat in Mochudi West. She won the Mochudi West BDP parliamentary primary elections in 2013. In the 2014 General Election, Dow failed to win the constituency from Gilbert Mangole of the Botswana Movement of Democracy (BMD).
She was later elected as SEMP and appointed the Minister of Basic Education. She did not contest for the 2019 General Election race and in her place the BDP put a royal, Mmusi Kgafela who managed to wrestle the constituency from the opposition. After 2019, Dow was once again elected SEMP and consequently, appointed the Minister of Foreign Affairs before stepping down from the position in August 2020. Now that the BCP has put Dow back in the west, she is likely to face Kgafela if the latter wins the BDP primaries popularly known as Bulela-Ditswe.
Justice Dow is a former judge, a former Cabinet minister, a practicing attorney and an author of both fiction and non-fiction works. She was the litigant in the now famous ‘The Attorney General v Unity Dow’, a groundbreaking case that is now a global guide on the interpretation of the Bill of Rights in national constitutions.
Dow is internationally recognised as a fighter for equality and justice and is the recipient of many honours and awards, including three honorary doctoral degrees and several human rights awards. Dow was, in July 2010, recognised by France with the award of the Legion of Honour, an equivalent to Naledi ya Botswana. Dow is the only person in Botswana who has served in all three arms of government. She is regarded as a fearless and passionate champion of democracy and the rule of law. Dow is married and has three adult children. She was born in Mochudi and now lives in Oodi and Leshibitse, in Kgatleng.
Julia Chepete - Mogoditshane West
With the Mogoditshane constituency having been divided into two, the BCP already has a candidate in Mogoditshane West being Julia Chepete, a seasoned microbiologist with experience in academia, management and consultancy.
Armed with a Master’s degree in Applied Microbiology, she laid the foundation for a career that would intertwine academia and real-world impact. Her journey into the corporate realm began at Kgalagadi Breweries Limited, where she worked as a Microbiologist, a role she has also got at the Botswana Meat Commission (BMC). A significant chapter in her journey unfolded at Cadbury Botswana, where she served as the Quality Environment Health & Safety (QEHS) Manager. In the realm of academia, she wears the hat of an educator, having served as a lecturer at the University of Botswana and she is currently senior lecturer at Botho University.
Born in Serowe, Chepete embarked on a journey of empowerment, transcending barriers that have long confined women to the sidelines. From her formative years in Serowe, through her education in Francistown, Molepolole and Ramotswa, to national service in Mogoditshane and eventually attaining a Bachelor’s degree at the University of Botswana, she has not only traversed the diverse landscapes of Botswana but has also embraced the challenges that came along.
Beyond the corporate, she is a proud mother and aunt, deeply rooted in Christian values and beliefs. She walks into the political arena backed by a deeply loving and close-knit family, immediate and extended. Her commitment to mentoring and empowering the youth, especially the girl-child, reflects a passion for shaping the future leaders of Botswana.
Mpho Pheko - Gaborone CentralProfessor Mpho Pheko, is a social justice activist and politician and was a parliamentary candidate for the Umbrella for Democratic Change (UDC) in the Gaborone Central constituency in the past General Election. Pheko returns to the same constituency she failed to win in 2019 after Tumisang Healy of the BDP won it with 4, 886 votes in 2019. Pheko, who came second then with 3, 085 votes, will give it another shot this time around in the BCP colours. This follows the BCP’s decision to quit the opposition coalition and go at it alone in this year’s General Election.
Pheko was born and raised in a small village called Mabutsane but she joined active politics in 2006, and currently serves as the publicity and information secretary for the BCP where she oversees the branding, marketing and communications portfolios for the party. She is a University professor, a mother and a businesswoman operating a consulting firm, which offers business consulting, events organising and corporate training services. In terms of professional standing, she currently works for the University of Botswana (UB) as a Head of Psychology Department and professor of Industrial-Organisational Psychology. Her interest in workers’ rights also led her to serve as an executive secretary of the University of Botswana staff Union, UBASSSU.
Academically, she earned her PhD in Organisational Psychology from the University of Cape Town, SA; M.A in Industrial-Organisational Psychology from Alliant International University, USA, and a BS Degree in Psychology from Barry University in Miami, USA.
Ethel Gampone - Mahalapye EastEthel Gampone is mostly known as a businesswoman and worked with corporate brand franchisee Nandos Botswana, Engen Marketing Botswana and Pizza Perfect. She was a franchisee for Nandos Botswana operator for 14 years, Engen Marketing for 16 years and Pizza Perfect for seven years.
Gampone worked for the Botswana Power Corporation as an accounts Officer for 10 years in the Expenditure Department Morupule Power Plant. In terms of education, Gampone holds a Diploma in Accounting, a Degree in Divinity and she is currently pursuing another Degree in Accounting and Human Resources. She is a mother of two adult children and has a granddaughter.
Gampone is described as a community builder who has actively participated in the development of the village business community positively. She is regarded as a fearless politician believing in the rule of law and democracy. Speaking of politics, Gampone is currently the vice president of BCP Women’s League (BCPWL), a position she was voted into in 2022.
Last year October when the BCP held phase one of their primary elections, Gampone contested in Palapye where she lost to Gape Motswaledi. Motswaledi received 1, 364 votes against Gampone’s 787. Recently Gaompone indicated during the Women’s League conference that men have made the political landscape not conducive to them, therefore, women must fight with all that they have to get their space. “Botswana must be run by both men and women. Men cannot give you leadership roles on a silver platter.
We have to fight for the positions in order to lead and advocate women and children issues,” she said. Now she sets her eyes on Mahalapye East, which is currently held by area legislator Yandani Boko. Boko won the constituency in the 2019 General Election with 4, 323 votes against BDP’s Dr Ditshupo Maje who received 3, 786 votes. Gampone has a mountain to climb specifically because for a long time, the constituency has been a stronghold of the BDP then under Botlogile Tshireletso.
Daisy Bathusi - Boteti EastDaisy Bathusi is an active politician and a businesswoman who once served as the president of the BCPWL. She boldly contested for the BCP vice presidency against the Member of Parliament for Bobonong constituency, Taolo Lucas in 2021.
Although she lost, Bathusi said then that she was happy with the results because it showed that members were starting to have confidence in women. In 2014, she was an MP candidate in the Boteti East constituency. She was also the BCP regional chairperson for the Boteti region (2012-2015). In the five years between 2014 and 2019 (inclusive), Bathusi was the President of the BCPWL, transforming it into a strong lobby and advocacy structure for women’s human rights and gender equality within the party, nationally and internationally. Bathusi is currently the Deputy secretary-general of the Women’s Academy for Africa (WAFA) and has since 2006 been the chairperson of the Botswana National Hospitality Standards Setting Task Team.
Prior to becoming an active politician, and a director of her family business, Bathusi worked for Debswana (the diamond company) for 23 years, rising through the ranks until she was appointed to the position of Business Services Manager. As an ardent activist on issues of equality and social justice, Bathusi was a visible player in the Anti-Paedophile campaign in Botswana dubbed #ISHALLNOTFORGET campaign against sexual violence against children. She was also an active part of the Anti-Gender-Based Violence campaign known as #IWEARWHATIWANT. Bathusi is also well known for initiating and leading campaigns for better sewage systems service delivery in her region, and a campaign and petition against the declining quality of education in Botswana, which continues to purge thousands of children out of the education system every year.
In terms of academic achievement, Bathusi holds a Post-Graduate Diploma in Strategic Diplomacy from the University of Johannesburg, a Diploma in Hotel Management and Institutional Operations from Derby College of Further Education (UK), and Associate Member of Chartered Secretaries and Administrators (ACISA) with WITS University (RSA).
Over the years, Bathusi has participated and spoken at several international conferences on topics such as democracy and governance, money in politics and its impact on women’s political participation, gender activism, among others. She returns to Boteti East as a BCP MP candidate and she could face the incumbent Sethomo Lelatisitswe once again. In 2014 when she contested, Bathusi came third with 1, 143 votes behind Mokgalo Petrus of the UDC with 1, 938 votes while Lelatisitswe got 5, 530 votes. In 2019 when the BCP contested under the UDC, Bathusi did not contest as the UDC fielded Tshenolo Saakane instead. The latter got 2,928 votes and lost to Lelatisitswe who managed to amass 4,204 votes to retain the constituency.