BDP fights to retain members as Barata-Phathi makes move

EPHRAIM KEORENG
Staff Writer | Friday April 23, 2010 00:00

Likewise, politics is a game of numbers and with the stage set for the BDP factional war, numbers become crucial as players either try to garner new membership or retain the members they already have. The Barata-Phathi faction is working on the finer details to register a new party.

And very much aware that politics is about how many people you have in your political party to win, or in the case of the BDP which is in governance, to stay in power, the BDP has launched a campaign blitz led by party president Ian Khama to reach out to BDP members and placate them into staying put rather than moving with this political wave and joining the new party.  The immense support for Barata-Phathi has never been in question, especially glaring at the Kanye Congress, where the faction literally took over the Central Committee through the ballot.

They achieved this feat despite the challenges they faced, mainly resource related.  The party and state president Khama and other A-Team members travelled the whole country canvassing support for the A-Team. One would have expected the A-Team to have won the central committee elections, what with the government vehicles and air transport used, especially in the case of the president and his vice-president Mompati Merafhe.

Barata-Phathi emerged victorious despite announcing that their chairman candidate Daniel Kwelagobe, was stranded in the Northern part of the country after his car broke down.  However, the victory amounted to nought as the Barata-Phati members in the central committee resigned and others like secretary general Gomolemo Motswaledi were suspended. They protested that they were under purge by the all-powerful president Khama. So it is interesting to watch events unfold within the BDP.

Since Barata-Phathi announced that they were forming a new party, the only response from the BDP has been to make threats and suspend some members. Perhaps aware now that this rival faction might be serious about breaking away, the BDP is wheeling out its war machine to protect its numbers. It cannot afford to stand aside as Barata-Phathi harvests from its membership.   If the Barata-Phathi can pull off something like the Kanye victory this time around, and garner big numbers in terms of supporters and most importantly MPs, it would be a bad omen for the BDP. Unless Khama dissolves parliament and calls for fresh elections, the BDP will fall on the wayside and become what it has never been in its more than 40 years of existence, an opposition party!    It is therefore not surprising that Khama is getting back on the trail, to plead with BDP membership not to jump ship. 

The BDP head office announced this week that Khama would address the party's members in the Northern part of Botswana, on the recent developments in the party before going to other parts of the country in the south. This 'development' is the Barata-Phathi's registration of a new party, which consequently means they would cease to be members of the BDP.  Already several members of parliament including Gaborone West South, Botsalo Ntuane, Wynter Mmolotsi of Francsitown South and many others are expected to lead this exodus from the ruling party.

The BDP leadership has realised that if they do nothing about this development, the party would suffer a bruising, hence Khama's announced trip to the north side of the country where he will meet BDP leaders at regional, constituency and branch level. The Khama meeting in Francistown, it appears, would also be an effort at a show of numbers. The language on the party's press release says it all. Besides the regional representatives in the north they want both the central committee members and the party's 77 sub-committee members to attend.  'The regions are expected to send 10 representatives. Members of the Central Committee and Sub-Committees of the Central Committees are invited. Preparations are underway for him (Khama) to address constituencies in the South,' reads Serema's statement in part. The BDP has pressed the panic button. Whilst Khama prepares to crisscross the country pleading with members not to follow Barata-Phathi leaders when they form the new party, the BDP secretariat together with the Political Education and Elections Committee (PEEC) will in the meantime retreat to Mahalapye and map out a strategy to whither this storm that threatens the root of BDP existence. 'We have heard that the faction (Barata-Phathi) have been addressing people in places like Lobatse, Gantsi and Maun. As a party we can't just be quiet forever, our people need to know what we are saying as BDP,' Serema told Mmegi in an interview yesterday. Perhaps the BDP might find some comfort in the knowledge that BDP membership, especially in rural areas is mostly made up of the elderly, who are known to be conservative and might look askance at the belligerent move by Barata-Phathi, hence prefer to stay put. But of course we will know who the victor is and who the vanquished is when the battle has been fought.