BPF allows Kehitile to contest Nata/Gweta primaries
Chakalisa Dube | Monday March 18, 2024 06:00
This development has set the stage for a face-off between Kehitile and party secretary-general Lawrence Ookeditse at the primaries scheduled for April 7, 2024.
The primaries are meant to book candidacy for the 2024 General Election. Currently, no other members have expressed interest in contesting the parliamentary primaries in Nata/Gweta. Insiders within the BPF have confirmed the reversal of the ban. The party executive is expected to release an official statement regarding the latest development. Sources reveal that a party commission dispatched to the constituency recently, recommended that Kehitile and Ookeditse go for the primaries, with an aim of promoting party unity in the area.
"We recently deployed a commission to discuss primary election issues in the constituency. We are awaiting its report at the next National Executive Committee (NEC) meeting to determine whether primaries will proceed or not. The NEC meeting is on Monday. I can only give a definite answer after the meeting," the BPF president, Mephato Reatile, told Mmegi. Initially, Kehitile, alongside other recruited councillors, had reportedly sought protection for incumbency at the council primaries through a letter to the BPF NEC.
Kehitile, a Dukwi councillor recruited from the BDP after the 2019 General Election, is said to have clarified that his actions were aimed at supporting fellow councillors and he did not signify withdrawal from contesting parliamentary primaries. Despite his clarification, the party barred him from contesting the parliamentary primaries. Additionally, it has come to light that the commission has also urged Kehitile to issue an apology to Ookeditse for his previous conduct. Kehitile had previously accused Ookeditse of abusing his powers and obstructing the party from holding primaries.
Although he denies it, there are also reports that Kehitile had approached the BPF patron and former president Ian Khama to intervene after he was barred from the primaries. Kehitile is said to have even travelled to South Africa to meet Khama. Khama is among the most influential members of the BPF, a party he helped form after his fallout with President Mokgweetsi Masisi in 2018. Khama is now on a self-imposed exile in South Africa. Meanwhile, reports suggest that the BPF has reaffirmed a proposal that councillors recruited from the ruling party should bypass the primaries.
The decision was reaffirmed during a meeting between councillors and the NEC, which was in Mahalapye on Saturday. Some BPF members were against the decision when it was first announced two weeks ago. They felt that the party is undermining the ideals of democracy by not hosting the council primaries in some wards.
On the other hand, the party said the decision is meant to ensure stability in the party. Reatile would not confirm or deny that the party has reaffirmed the decision. “We are still consulting with the structures on issues relating to the proposal by councillors that they should not be challenged at the primaries. A proper announcement will be made in due course. We want the intended message to reach our members to avoid misperception,” he said.