'It's Well With Me'

EPHRAIM KEORENG
Staff Writer | Monday October 26, 2009 00:00

 

His suspension means the 39-year-old Motswaledi will only be eligible to stand for public office in the 2019 general elections. He will be 49 years old then.

Despite this banishment Motswaledi, who has been engaged in the most serious political battle of his life is relaxed and seems unconcerned about anything, let alone his political life that has just been ruthlessly put on hold.

In trying to give meaning to his acceptance of his situation with much grace, he resorts to the use of agricultural metaphors.

'When I was a student I remember in agriculture when we were taught about paddocking; that you can't just farm the whole field, you need to leave out the other paddocks which you can later use for growing other crops. I am still youthful and five years after my suspension I will still be productive enough, in the meantime I would be regrouping,' he said.

Whilst awaiting the judgement, which took some days, something very strange happened.Well-placed people approached him. 'They knew everything about the judgement before it was even passed. Some even told me to appeal it,' he said.

He holds that he is innocent and up to date has no reason to believe otherwise, but also stresses that he accepts the suspension with grace because the party cannot afford to be put under the strain 'when the suspenders believe they are right and myself believing I was right in the things I am accused of doing (wrongly).

We have to run the party and govern the nation whilst at the same time we have this parallel righteousness. In short, my belief in my innocence and the Disciplinary Committee's belief in my guilt is not my concern. I want a prosperous BDP and Botswana nation, safe from this wrangling. If I have to take five years leave, so be it,' he said.

Explaining how he came to be a member of the BDP, Motswaledi says that as a secondary school student fascinated by debate he was attracted to the party because of three ideals - its culture and its philosophy.

'My love for the BDP was founded on that. That is why whilst a student at the University of Botswana in my sociology classes I used to argue with my lecturers about the party (BDP). I believed in it and its ideals. The BDP over time has been a dynamic organisation.

It has developed and transformed to adapt to the terrain in which it operates. But the question is: has it remained true to the modus operandi of its founding days? That one is questionable,' he says.

He says that it had never occurred to him that one day he would be ostracised from the party, but points out that he will continue serving Botswana in sports, arts and culture at community and national levels, depending on where his services are needed.

At the moment Motswaledi will be going back to the UB where he had taken unpaid leave.He will be at the institution where he is executive assistant to the Vice Chancellor on November 1.

He accepts that politics is an artful game that takes a good player who knows not only how to play but also to read the game.

'In politics, there is political gamesmanship. Some are good, some are not. Some become successful briefly. So I bear no grudges on anyone, after all the game is greater than all its players,' he said.

Despite his banishment, he rules out joining another political party.  He said that what he knows is that opposition parties, especially his competitors for the Gaborone Central constituency - Dumelang Saleshando and the BNF's Kagiso Thutwe have been supportive in his ordeal, especially the court fights. 'They can't take advantage and make moves on me to come over to their side,' he said.

One would have expected his comrades-in-arms especially the Barata-Phathi members in the central committee to side with their man, who after all did their bidding when he stood tall and defended an idea that they collectively shared - that the powers of the party president should be clearly defined. Perhaps as it usually happens in Western democracies, they could be walking out of (central committee positions) in solidarity with their man. So what really is happening here?

'Issues of commission matter most than those of omission. People are concerned about what will happen if I do something, than if I don't do it. That is in our economy, risk management is a new phenomenon,' says Motswaledi.

He however adds that he receives much support from his friends especially in the central committee, ' and I am happy with it,' he said.

He also tells that his father was very supportive during his ordeal as he offered him moral support. He would travel all the way to Serowe where he would sit down with his old man to read the Bible and later pray,' then I would come back to Gaborone,' he said.

He says that he is yet to pay the legal bill from his legal war with Khama and says that he is still pleading with members of the public to help raise the amount.

Asked if he would have won the Gaborone Central constituency for his party, the former BDP secretary general said:

'Without disrespecting my contenders, especially the immediate incumbent (Saleshando) my hopes for winning it were by no means modest. But that is water under the bridge,' he said.

Responding to the most asked question about this strong man who has managed to stay tough in the face of serious challenges, facing off against a party president who also doubles as President of Botswana, of where does he get all the strength to keep a smile on his face, Motswaledi slips to the philosophical realm to offer his answer.

'This world and all that is in it is God's. We are all here through His grace and what is happening here is through His grace. Troubles make us stronger and more successful.

You can't be a leader if you have not been in trouble. You can't take people out of trouble if you didn't experience it. One day I will have my victory,' he says.