'Bring back inter-party dialogue' -Mmolotsi

Gothataone Moeng | Tuesday February 18, 2014 15:44

 

 

In a motion presented to Parliament last week, Mmolotsi said dialogue among political parties usually takes place within democratic institutions. 

He said parliamentary dialogue alone cannot always meet the need for genuine exploration of consensus or compromise. 

He added it is imperative that discussion takes place across the political divide when it comes to issues of national importance like political reforms, unemployment, land and a dwindling economy.

Inter-party dialogue is often vital to sustainably address the underlying structural, economic and socio-political bottlenecks in order to achieve needed reforms, he said.

Such dialogue also contributes to democratic consolidation and sustainable socio-economic development by rallying political parties around a shared national development agenda.

According to Mmolotsi, when properly conducted, parties move beyond their interests, and such dialogue can generate consensus and buy-in from citizens and other stakeholders in a country's development agenda.

'Once all political parties have agreed on a common development path, it is more likely to be implemented by the relevant government institutions.  Engaging political parties in this important debate through country-level dialogues should be given prominence to ensure that the outcomes are homegrown, locally owned and sustainable,” he said.

He said the ruling party cannot drive the governing of the country on its own, without the input of other political parties. He said inter-party dialogue would allow for collective responsibility during times of difficulty.

'When things go wrong, or when things turn really bad, all politicians must stand together. But if there is no party dialogue, people will always say ask the BDP, ask the BDP,” he said.

Mmolotsi argued that in post-independent Botswana, a critical urban population has emerged that has started putting pressure on political institutions.

'It is against this backdrop that it is critical to stimulate effective and greater political cooperation to address among others reforms which could address some of the challenges the nation is facing,” he said.

He said that during times of tension in the country, when those in the opposition express their views, they are told they are unpatriotic.

For illustration, he gave the example of last year’s proclamation by Vice President Ponatshego Kedikilwe to postpone the Francistown West by-election.  This was partly on the strength of a petition that was later found to be fraudulent. 

Mmolotsi argued that inter-party dialogue would also promote tolerance, and work towards the prevention of conflict.  He said there is a tendency in Botswana to bury heads in the sand, and pretend as if there are no issues that can lead to intolerance.

'We cannot sit here and ignore things as if they are not there, lest we are caught someday when people are no longer in the mood to negotiate,” he said. 

He said constitutional and institutional reforms brought about by political parties’ dialogue could also be mechanisms of arresting conflict.

In his response, Minister of Presidential Affairs and Public Administration Mokgweetsi Masisi said that although Mmolotsi’s motion may seem innocent it is laden with 'burdensome and fallacious assumptions”.

He said government has systems, institutions and instruments in place to address the challenges brought about in Mmolotsi’s motion. 

He denied Mmolotsi’s allegation of intolerance, calling him an anti-example of the intolerance that he alleges by virtue of having crossed the floor to become a member of the Botswana Movement for Democracy (BMD).

'In fact, the very existence of your party in this House is an example of the very things you are alleging,” he said. 

He said while he agreed that it is important to promote inter-party dialogue, it should be premised on goodwill and sincerity. 

He argued that Mmolotsi's motion was premised on negative issues, and sought to “whip up emotions and beat war-drums”.  He said this was a way of holding the government ransom.

Masisi also argued that parliamentary debates and motions brought to the House constitute inter-party dialogue.

“This here, right now, this is inter-party dialogue.  You present motions, our members present motions, and we get questions.  That is dialogue across parties.  We recognise each other in this house as parties,” he said.

He said the opposition is fixated on the All Party Conference format of dialogue, and said they are myriad alternatives for dialogue to take place without the conference, including through the media.

–  'We must not see sitting at a conference and discussing the dwindling economy as a panacea that in itself prevents the onset of conflict,” he said.