Molotsi warns unions against partisan politics
Chakalisa Dube | Thursday August 28, 2014 06:00
But his advice fell on deaf ears as the Botswana Sectors of Educators’ Union (BOSETU) delegates at their recently ended elective congress in Palapye were evidently encouraged by their leaders to vote for the Umbrella for Democratic Change (UDC).
The Botswana Federation of Public Sector Unions (BOFEPUSU) Secretary General, Johnson Motshwarakgole poured cold water on the supposedly wise counsel.
To deafening applause from the delegates he said: “As civil servants we should do as we have agreed. Viva (Gomolemo) Motswaledi viva. Moono ke one oo.
“From this Saturday I will be launching political party candidates and where you will see me ke gone ko moonong (that is where your votes should go).
Motswaledi is the late former Secretary General of the UDC who died in a tragic, but controversial road accident a few weeks ago on the way from South Africa. Giving the keynote address during BOSETU elective congress on Tuesday in Palapye, Molotsi argued that being a member of a political party de-legitimises a union.
He said while in cahoots with a political party, a trade union will not always occupy a strategic position to sufficiently influence policy and law in favour of the working people.
He warned that many unions have been destroyed and weakened by their move to join or form a political party. He cited experiences of trade unions in Angola, Mozambique, Namibia and South Africa who formed a coalition with political parties or formed their own parties.
“Such coalitions provide interesting lessons for us in Botswana,” he added, further citing Zambia’s government of Frederick Chiluba and Chakufa Chihana of Malawi .
Chiluba, a former union leader helped found the Movement for Multi-party Democracy (MMD) in Zambia while Chihana, a human rights activist, pro-democracy advocate, trade unionist and later a politician, joined the Malawi Congress Party (MCP) that was spearheading the anti-federation (Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland) and anti-colonial British rule in Nyasaland.
He continued to be a pro-independence trade unionist and pro-democracy activist and as a result was dismissed from the MCP.
Molotsi further added that partisan political options have not served the working people very well especially in developing countries where the working populations are relatively small in relation to the unemployed and poverty-stricken rustic populations.
“My advice to unions has always been that; do not take this path when the levels of poverty and unemployment in the country are still so high. I am not saying workers and unions should not participate and influence political outcomes.
“As individual citizen workers you have to have party affiliations and when you retire that is when you can become political representatives of individual parties,” he added.
The acting CEO also decried the country’s lack of proper leadership in many aspects in order to address challenges faced by Batswana.
“Botswana needs leaders who see beyond here and now. Botswana needs leaders who know how to resolve issues through collective bargaining and negotiation and not through force and intimidation,” he said. Meanwhile Motshwarakgole dismissed allegations that he used BOFEPUSU funds to finance Daniel Kwelagobe’s launch.
“There have been media reports that I am a Botswana Democratic Party (BDP) member and I funded BDP’s Kwelagobe’s launch using money from BOFEPUSU.
“Those reports are untrue because I do not even have access to the funds of the union. There are people within the union who coordinate the use of the movement’s funds,” he said.
He also dispelled fears that if unions take part in partisan politics they run the risk of being controlled by political parties. Motshwarakgole maintained that unions will always be independent from influence by political parties.
In another revelation BOFEPUSU vice secretary general Ketlhalefile Motshegwa said that should the Independent Electoral Commission (IEC) not agree on suitable allowances for their members who will be engaged to coordinate the general elections in October, the organisation (IEC) will have to seek its own human resources as their members cannot work for peanuts.
“We have written to them requesting a meeting to discuss issues of allowances,” he said.