BDP campaign manager accused of arrogance, incompetence
| Friday August 29, 2014 15:54
With less than two months to the October 24 general elections, Mmegi has leant that the tensions are so high that some candidates have threatened not to work with their strategist.
At the heart of the candidates’ concern is that Seametso is incapable of managing the party’s national campaign and that he is clueless on issues of strategy and elections approach. It is also alleged that at one point Timor Consulting, a company engaged by BDP to run its election campaign called for his replacement but Khama refused.
The party has however set up special campaign committee to assist Seametso to execute his mandate following complaints about his competence, sources have said. According to BDP candidates who spoke to Mmegi this week, Seametso lacks basic skills, ideas and sophistication to manage the national campaign. His arrogance is also said to be the reason why BDP candidates are unwilling to work with him.
Seametso is also accused of failing to heal divisions in critical constituencies around the country. Some of the constituencies he has allegedly failed to unite warring party factions are Tlokweng and Mochudi East.
“The truth is that majority of central committee members never supported the appointment of Seametso. At the time when the BDP is facing serious challenge from the opposition parties, you don’t appoint someone like Seametso to this critical position,” said a central committee member.
In 2012 Seametso was a campaign manager for BDP lobby group led by the party’s former chairperson Samson Moyo Guma.
Seametso questioned the loyalty of those who dismisses his competence as fake BDP members with a hidden agenda.
“This job is not above me. In fact this is one of the easiest jobs I have ever done as a politician. My task is simply to strategise and coordinate talent and resources for the benefit of the party. My job is made easier by the fact that I am managing a united party,” he said.
Seametso challenged BDP members who are not happy with his performance to come out in the open.
“As far as I know I am doing a good job as campaign manager. There is no doubt that that I am the right person for the job,” he said.
BDP secretary general Mpho Balopi dismissed reports that Seametso was not up to scratch. “What is up to scratch in politics? As far as we are concerned as a politician he is up to scratch and he is up to scratch as a campaign manager. We are happy with his job. Besides he is not reinventing any wheel, he is working with party structures and campaign managers in the 57 constituencies,” he said.