Is BNF committing harakiri in Tonota?

Ryder Gabathuse | Friday July 25, 2014 13:15

For starters, the BNF penetrated Tonota constituency – a ruling Botswana Democratic Party (BDP) stronghold of many years  - only in the 2009 general elections.

Now, having started their campaigns on the wrong footing and dislodged as they appear now, it raises doubts if the party will really rise to the occasion this time around.

But no doubt, if the BNF is able to put its house in order timeously, it has the potential of giving the BDP a run for its money.

It is party operatives like councillor Lemme Kgopa who are forces behind the promising successes of the BNF.

Other council wards won by the BNF in the last general elections include Tonota West, in which Gaefele Sedombo is the councillor and Mandunyane, which was won by retired Brigadier Bathoeng Maseko before he defected to the BDP. Kgopa relocated from Gaborone-West where he was a BNF councillor for some time to join the BNF team in Tonota before the 2009 general elections and won the council seat.

Michael Mzwinila was the parliamentary candidate for the BNF in 2009 when the party made history but in this year’s general elections, he has registered as an independent candidate.

The voting pattern in the 2009 general elections, reflect that the BDP came atop via 5,617 votes, represented by Moatlhodi.

Mzwinila and Boipuso Mothoosele garnered 2,966 and 269 votes for the BNF and Botswana Peoples Party (BPP) respectively.

The year 2009 was the BNF and opposition’s best in the area as they won three council seats out of a possible seven. The voice of opposition was at its loudest for the first time in the area since Independence. Now a threat emanating from within the BNF has become a permanent feature on the party’s agenda in Tonota.  There is incessant talk as to who will be the party’s parliamentary candidate and it doesn’t seem like there will be any immediate solution to this trouble.

Attitudes are hardened. Comrades are swearing at each other and morale is generally low in the party as confusion around the parliamentary candidate continues to manifest itself. There was absolutely nothing wrong with Kgopa and company recruiting Moatlhodi into the BNF fold, especially after he (Moatlhodi) bolted out of the BDP following post Bulela Ditswe primary election troubles. There was everything wrong with the manner in which Moatlhodi was given hope that he would be the party’s flag-bearer in Tonota when in fact the BNF already had a candidate.

It is apparent that this is the source of acrimony in Tonota and the party faithful have been tasked with making a decision as to who should represent them. That is, after Bontshetse was identified as the party parliamentary hopeful. The BNF leadership is not helping the situation in Tonota as they procrastinate instead of taking full control of the situation.  If the situation in Tonota is their bull then they should take it by its horns. This attitude (from the BNF leadership) of procrastinating troubles has the potential of complicating matters and worse, polarising the party.

Of late, BNF operatives in the constituency identify themselves through two main camps: They are either pro-Maokaneng or pro-Moatlhodi.

This is not a healthy situation especially in an election year. Whilst other political parties racing for the parliamentary seat in Tonota, BDP and Botswana Congress Party (BCP) are advanced in their preparations in the constituency, the BNF is still grappling with identifying their ideal candidate.

Although the BNF had initially paraded a youthful candidate, 38-year-old Bontshetse, the situation changed only last April as the Deputy Speaker of the National Assembly, Pono Moatlhodi defected to the BNF from the ruling BDP. Prior to the entrance of Moatlhodi, who is popularly known as ‘PPP’, Bontshetse -  a football administrator-cum-politician – was the sole parliamentary candidate.

The entry of Moatlhodi into the BNF fold in Tonota has changed the complexion of the BNF political game. The local party leadership working with the national leadership recently paraded Moatlhodi to the constituents together with about 753 defectors from the BDP.

It was the second time Moatlhodi was being paraded to the masses without word from the party what such action really signified. On April 27 and July 1, the party held massive rallies to showcase ‘their man’ to the curious crowd and the party’s story remains unclear up to now as to what really lies beneath these rallies.

The incumbent area MP, Moatlhodi’s defection from the ruling BDP to the opposition BNF a few months ago was in any measure something to celebrate for the BNF.

It deserved to be celebrated, as he is indeed a big catch.

But, was it really proper for the BNF to alter its plans simply to accommodate Moatlhodi?

What message is the party leadership sending to the party operatives and candidate Bontshetse?

After establishing himself in the constituency and setting the ball rolling for the BNF campaigns, is there anything that can convince Bontshetse and his supporters that they are suddenly not the right people to represent the BNF in Tonota? The young man started his campaigns when he set up Tonota FC football team, in 2006. Although the football team consists of members some of whom are drawn from the BDP, the agreement is that they are going to vote for the BNF. All the 45 Tonota FC players know where their bread is buttered and are on the side of Bontshetse.

These are questions that the BNF leadership is grappling with at indoor meetings in Tonota constituency and in Gaborone at the party’s headquarters, commonly known as Kopano House. That the matter is taking too long to resolve, also signifies the gravity of the subject under review.

Moatlhodi had told Mmegi in a previous interview that by May 1, the matter of who represents the BNF will be rested but it never happened. The party’s senior leaders then said the candidate would be known last Friday but that never happened.

Moatlhodi at the time of our interview was even optimistic that it was only a matter of time before an agreement was sealed.  At a rally held in Tonota to welcome him home on April 27, 2014, he described Bontshetse as “my son” and dismissed reports that tension existed between them, describing the whole affair as simply the figment of people’s imagination.

“When he was abroad, he bought me some good clothes. Talks on who should represent the BNF and Umbrella for Democratic Change (UDC) at parliamentary level are on course,” Moatlhodi said about his relationship with Bontshetse. He even said that the negotiations involved the parents so that everything was conducted fairly and openly. Two months down the line, nothing has come out of Moatlhodi’s optimism, and the negotiations have seemingly become bogged down.