Hunyepa: A militant, radical and a great political organiser
Ryder Gabathuse | Thursday May 7, 2026 11:57
He was raised in a family of the politically converted who plied their trade in the opposition Botswana Peoples Party during the Phillip Matante era. The assistant Minister of Basic Education and Child Welfare hails from Gulubane in the northeast, where he attended all his primary education. He would then proceed to Francistown Senior Secondary School, where he did his whole secondary education. Trade unionism would later play a crucial role in setting up a clear path for Hunyepa, who literally rose from trade unionism to partisan party politics. His mother, Ellen Kudzimu Hunyepa, is still in Gulubane village, and is a staunch member of the BPP. His late grandmother, Sarah Dodzi, was also a staunch BPP member throughout her life in Francistown’s low-income Monarch location. His grandmother featured prominently in demonstrations organised by the late party stalwart, Matante, reflecting her political consciousness. These are some of the traits that the legislator inherited.
That family history aside, Hunyepa was introduced to politics after joining college student activism on his own volition. But the home influence was colossal, baptising and alluring for the trade unionist-cum-politician. Initially, at MCE, Hunyepa was elected the information and propaganda minister, and some months later, the justice minister was expelled from the college. Attempts to hold elections in the controversial ministry failed, and the SRC president, Given Khuta, then deployed him to run two ministries: Justice and Information. As Justice Minister, Hunyepa took the government to court twice: MCE SRC vs Ministry of Education (Attorney General) in a human rights case following the “Open Day” boycott in 1993. The other human case, which is now a gender landmark case where pregnant student teachers were suspended from college, and this was gross discrimination. As the justice minister under SRC instructions, they engaged Moupo, Dingake and Motswagole Law firm, and ultimately won the two cases.
As a new teacher, Hunyepa and colleague Mbanga Mbanga, now opposition Botswana Democratic Party (BDP) activist, resuscitated the then Botswana Federation of Secondary School Teachers (BOFESETE), which is now known as Botswana Sectors of Educators Trade Union (BOSETU) in Sefhare while they were teachers there.
“In fact, the plan was to form a teacher trade union. The rest is history. I was roped in as publicity secretary and later employed as executive secretary,” Hunyepa tells Mmegi. As BOSETU executive secretary, he was the first to introduce the 1% subscription, which other unions were afraid of doing, “fearing membership backlash. I did and managed the disgruntlement and threats to terminate.” In the 13th Parliament, Hunyepa is part of other MPs in the House who were part of the 2011 mother of all strikes because of its impact. Trade unions demonstrated against the former president Ian Khama’s government, which refused to grant a salary increase. Others include MPs Helen Manyeneng, Goretetse Kekgonegile, and Ketlhalefile Motshegwa.
After the 2011 public sector strike, Hunyepa approached banks to help manage the stinging “No work-no pay” repercussions, and most banks refused to freeze the loans. BancABC was reluctant initially, as it only provided corporate services. The bank ultimately agreed, and for the first time, a bank had such a relationship with a trade union. “We invited other public sector trade unions to BancABC, and the response was so positive. Some banks almost closed down due to the exodus to BancABC. The union’s fortunes changed as it suddenly got millions. The bank must have made billions out of its relationship with the public service unions.” As part of his political journey, the legislator later left the BOSETU stable with a ‘fat bank account running into millions’. The union had two buildings at the African Mall and the Main Mall, and two plots in Metsemotlhabe and Maun, which Hunyepa had personally applied for. In 2009, through BOSETU, he won another Botswana Examinations Council (BEC) case, which made it clear that marking and invigilation of external examinations were not the duty of teachers. “I also worked on the transition of BOFESETE to BOSETU, a trade union, and it was the first to unionise amongst the public sector.” Hunyepa is upbeat that the new government (Umbrella for Democratic Change) is the result of endless sacrifices, including years of victimisation. He, however, received no promotion in his teaching service despite good results as a teacher. He coached basketball, table tennis, athletics, and other sports, reached national finals several times, and left glittering trophies at some of the schools. “I juggled these with trade unionism. I am now using this experience to juggle constituency work, Cabinet assignments, party politics, family, farming, and other commitments. He concurs that it’s not smooth all the time. “I have been an activist since my primary school days through the Scout Club. At Francistown Senior Secondary School (FSSS), we once boycotted food and lessons due to certain circumstances. We were walloped thereafter, and life went on.” He understands the student demonstrations and workers’ disgruntlement, which are key stages that might lead to partisan political activism. He has been there and is happy his government is managing students’ activism well as a human rights government. He is hopeful that as the economy improves, students’ discontent will go down. His trade union mentor, Baboloki Tlale, first met Hunyepa way back when he was a deputy school head at Molopo River CJSS in Phitshane Molopo, and the Tati West legislator was a senior teacher at one of the junior secondary schools in Tswapong. “Hunyepa and Mbanga wanted to form a union for secondary school teachers and had made an announcement to that effect on the radio. Little did they know that there was an existing secondary school teachers’ union called BOFESETE, which was then inactive,” reminisces Tlale. It was Tlale and Richard Boitshwarelo who quickly responded to the invitation so they could address the teachers regarding BOFESETE in a way that inducted them into BOFESETE rather than allowing them to form another union. “Hunyepa was instrumental in reviving the fortunes of BOFESETE, which eventually was renamed BOSETU. He worked very hard to recruit members to join BOFESETE. One of the critical battles that he fought hard for was recognition of BOFESETE by being granted a deduction code, which allowed teachers to pay their subscriptions from their salaries,” he tells Mmegi. The subscription led to the establishment of the office. Hunyepa was eventually appointed chief executive officer in recognition of his role in the teachers’ union’s growth. Even after he joined active politics, he received some support from the union in recognition of his outstanding contributions.
As a unionist, Tlale reminisces that Hunyepa was fearless to the extent that the then Ministry of Education officials feared him. The weapon that Hunyepa used in his advocacy was his pen; he was then relentless in authoring hard-hitting articles that highlighted teachers’ grievances. While with BOSETU, Tlale remembers that the legislator championed many educational reforms, such as a ban on students’ transport in trucks. His election to Parliament is a natural progression of his activism and championing the rights of the disadvantaged! “That is Hunyepa now and then, a relentless fighter of the workers.”
Minister of Local Government and Traditional Affairs, Ketlhalefile Motshegwa, met Hunyepa in Mahalapye, at a time when he was teaching at Mowana CJSS, where “I was a student, and he was teaching history. So, he became our coach at the History club for the quiz and debate.” Motshegwa says Hunyepa was a good basketball coach, a role he also assumed at Mowana. He found his teacher very active and diverse in terms of skills. They would later meet again in the trade unions, “and we became great friends up to today, we discuss a lot of things and advise each other”. Motshegwa also describes his former teacher as a passionate farmer, especially in crop production and small stock, where he demonstrates great commitment and decision-making. At a personal level, “he is such a humble, caring, down-to-earth individual who always advises and inspires others. He is always wishing others to succeed. He loves his family so much”. In the trade unions, Hunyepa was renowned more for his passion and skills as he wrote a number of policy positions for BOFESETE, which later became BOSETU. Also, Hunyepa rose through the ranks, from one of the association/union’s founders to publicity secretary, and later executive secretary.
“He was always a thorn in the flesh of many education ministers, particularly then minister Pelonomi Venson-Moitoi. In the unions, he was militant and radical, a great organiser and mobiliser.” He also hails Hunyepa as having been a solid member of the Botswana National Front (BNF). “We linked again in Gaborone Bonnington South constituency, where we were both members of the party in that constituency. When I became the parliamentary candidate in 2019, he was part of the team of strategists who were mobilising and marshalling my campaign.” He added: “He demonstrated his organisational skills by capacitating the ward and constituency committees on minute taking, record keeping and party management. In 2022, he and I contested for the central committee of the BNF, where he became the publicity secretary, and I became the secretary-general”.
Motshegwa and Hunyepa worked closely together, and the latter demonstrated maturity and organisational skills in managing that portfolio, linking the party with the media and disseminating party information to structures. Hunyepa’s politics are those of the left, endowed with the fusion of trade union politics and generational and national politics. In 2024, he was loaned by BNF to the BPP at the latter’s request to represent UDC and contest a parliamentary seat in Tati West, where he was successful. After the UDC historic win in 2024, Hunyepa was appointed the Assistant Minister in the Ministry of Tertiary Education and was deployed to the Ministry of Child Welfare and Basic Education. He continues to make great contribution in Cabinet and Parliament from a research point, as he places importance on research and analysis. “I consider him a down-to-earth, radical intellectual who rose from the classroom to trade union trenches to party headquarters and now Parliament.” In the 2024 polls, Hunyepa convincingly won the constituency by garnering 6,713 votes (49.99%), beating BDP’s Simon Moabi, who got 3,223 votes, a margin of 3,490 votes. The legislator made his debut in the current 13th Parliament. Before Parliament, he was a services membership manager at BOSETU from June 1, 2023, where he focused directly on teacher welfare issues. He said his focus is “teachers the world over are not treated so well in terms of their welfare”. He was also BNF publicity secretary until he resigned to take the BOSETU role. He credits his political activism with giving him access to “decision makers in terms of politicians at the Cabinet level and legislators” to push welfare issues. For the most part of activism, Hunyepa’s target was education, teacher working conditions, public-sector wages, pensions, and labour rights, and all the key UDC campaign points from Tati West.
It should also be remembered that during his launch as the Tati West candidate, UDC leader Duma Boko outlined priorities that Hunyepa campaigned on: raising the old-age pension to P1,800, national school feeding, a P4,000 minimum wage, combating poverty/unemployment, and inadequate healthcare. New MPs typically use debates to push their party’s manifesto promises, especially in budget and State of the Nation responses. Now, with Botswana’s mainstay of the economy, diamonds, not bought, Hunyepa might be frustrated as his government is finding it tough to implement some of its campaign promises.
As a cabinet member, it is his duty to step up and field questions in Parliament. Some of his responses under his current ministry, Child Welfare and Basic Education, included school transport for rural learners, in which he indicated that decent transport for all learners is necessary to ensure they arrive safely. In his recent response to MP Tshenolo Bogatsu’s question; the assistant minister acknowledged 41 learners from Ramankhung who struggle with distance/transport. Council provided three donkey carts as an interim measure. He noted the problem affects other areas of the country, not just the Kweneng region.
Regarding textbook shortages, in response to MP Tlhabologo Furniture, he confirmed that the ministry is aware of the nationwide shortage. He said the backlog is due to funding cuts. He promised that the minister was pinning hopes on the new financial year to address it. Equally, in his past portfolio as Assistant Minister of Higher Education, Hunyepa tackled the issue of technical/vocational graduate unemployment. He was responding to Nkange MP Motlhaleemang Moalosi about PGDTVE graduates not being able to find teaching jobs in brigades or colleges. He said the ministry is recruiting for vacant technical and vocational posts, using DPSM and the Botswana Labour Market Information system.
It is apparent that Hunyepa’s contributions in the National Assembly, when articulating issues of education, and his general contributions align with his BOSETU background. He has been focusing on teacher welfare, access to education, TVET employment, and rural school logistics.