BMD headaches grow as July nears
Tsaone Basimanebotlhe | Friday March 24, 2017 16:16
Names, including of new members, are emerging for top leadership positions, to be elected at the congress planned for President’s Holidays in July.
Among those lobbied is the former Speaker of Parliament, Margaret Nasha for the position of chairperson, which the current holder, Nehemiah Modubule is non-committal about. Nasha, who decamped from the ruling Botswana Democratic Party to join the BMD just over a year ago, is known as the Iron Lady of Botswana politics.
Before going to the opposition, she had held many positions in the Government of the day, different Ministerial positions under two former presidents, and ended up assuming the Speakership in the 11th Parliament.
Today, she is featured in almost all major rallies of the Umbrella for Democratic Change, an opposition coalition the BMD is member of. While her newness to the five-year-old party may be her undoing, Nasha’s winning hand is the fact that nobody can place her in any of the factions. “Nasha is not aligned to any faction and she is against factions.
Some members within the movement believe that if elected to party national executive committee (NEC), she could bring stability within the party.
Even during the talks, she played a big role because she could listen to all factions and give advise without taking sides. So the movement needs her during this time,” a source within the party said. Nasha did not respond calls from Mmegi at the time of going to press.
Modubule on the other hand stated that he has not yet decided whether to contest or not. “The party NEC is currently focusing on preparations for youth congress to ensure that the elections run smoothly without any interference from outside. After the youth congress, I think that is when individuals will make up their mind,” Modubule said. Mmegi has learnt that the current secretary general Gilbert Mangole will be challenged by Phenyo Butale. Mangole has been clear that he will defend his current position.
Butale said as a member of the BMD, he is just waiting for the members to give him guidance on where they think he could serve the movement better. “For now I cannot specifically say I will contest for secretary general position.
Very soon, I will know which position I am contesting for,” he said. Another position that is likely going to be contested for is of the president. For some time now, a strong faction within the BMD had wanted Sidney Pilane to challenge the current president Ndaba Gaolathe and are now lobbying hard.
“Pilane has not yet made up his mind on the matter. I understand he had asked members to give him time to think about it,” the source said. Efforts to get comment from Pilane were unsuccessful, as his phone rang unanswered