Khama 'speaks' at BCP rally

LEKOPANYE MOOKETSI
Correspondent | Tuesday August 11, 2009 00:00

Not only that: restraint was exercised by both sides when the BCP accorded Khama the opportunity to speak and Khama used the opportunity to show a touch of diplomacy.

One of the BCP officials at the rally said the vehicle from which Khama and his aides eventually emerged had been parked there for a long time but they could never have suspected that it carried Khama.

Nonetheless, the BCP welcomed the President to their rally, conveyed him to a seat but made sure he did not steal the show, the BCP official said. And so Khama sat among BCP officials in a territory in which he is Kgosi, the traditional sovereign.

A Btv footage showed Khama receiving a rousing welcome from BCP supporters. People gathered around Khama even when the rally ended.

At a subsequent rally in Gaborone on Sunday, a BCP councillor Phagenyana Phage said they had criticised the Botswana Democratic Party (BDP) as Khama listened attentively.

Councillor for Mmopane, Phagenyana Phage, regaled the audience with an account of 'the unexpected visitor' that the BCP had had in Tswapong the previous day, saying they were never intimidated by Khama's presence.

One of the officials who had addressed the rally in Borolong was BCP Vice President, Dr Kesitegile Gobotswang, one of the fiercest critics of Khama's government. Gobotswang told Khama in Borolong that the BCP had nothing personal against him but that their concern was the manner in which Khama ran the government.

Before closing their rally, BCP officials handed the microphone over to Khama to respond to some of the concerns raised. Whereupon Khama gladly obliged, but was careful not to stir any controversy.

But the unexpected arrival of Khama was a blessing in disguise for the BCP because the rally was covered by Btv. By contrast, the rally on Sunday, at which the BCP launched Anna Motlhagodi as its parliamentary candidate for Gaborone West North, went without television coverage.