Poor structures blamed for BMD mess
Tsaone Basimanebotlhe | Tuesday May 23, 2017 17:16
Addressing party members on Sunday, BMD vice president Wynter Mmolotsi said that the absence of the committees is a serious challenge.
“I wonder if the disciplinary committee is going to be formed quickly to listen to our case. The constitution allows that if a disciplinary committee is there, then there should be an appeals’ committee, which is not there.”
“If these two structures were there in the BMD, we could have taken action against them. Again, in the BMD you cannot suspend someone without a complaint letter. There should be charges also,” Mmolotsi said. The BMD vice president said they are worried that for the past two years there has never been policy assembly to review the constitution.
“The director of that is the MP for Molepolole South Tlamelo Mmatli who is also with those men. He has failed to run policy assembly, rather he keeps on blaming the president,” he said.
Mmatli who did not attend the Sunday meeting has gone to social media (Facebook) preaching reconciliation amongst BMD members’ especially party leadership.
“Bakaulengwe, it is not too late to reconcile and work things out between us. Our movement (BMD) needs us all, and we are stronger together. Our differences are neither ideological nor are they policy related. The party is ripped apart thanks to egocentricism amongst its top leadership. We must not allow egos to divide our beautiful movement. I am not saying this out of feelings of weakness, to the contrary I feel stronger saying this and thinking this way. For the record, some of us have tried in vain to find peaceful ways of resolving the impasse between us leadership. Peace is desirable and achievable,” Mmatli said in a Facebook post published over the weekend.
He said they should quickly commit to working towards reconciliation.
Former BMD Youth League president, Phenyo Segokgo told the gathering that he nearly lost his chairman seat after some leaders in his party tried to influence his councillors not to vote for him.
Segokgo, who successfully defended his chairmanship of South East District Council (SEDC) attributed his election to the intervention of Botswana Congress Party (BCP) secretary general, Kentse Rammidi and MP for Ramotswa, Samuel Rantuana who reconciled opposition councillors at SEDC. Segokgo, BMD president Ndaba Gaolathe, and Mmolotsi and four others were last week suspended from BMD.
“Some of the BMD leaders whose decision to postpone the congress I did not agree with had tried to influence councillors not to vote for me because they were going to suspend me from the party.”
“They have been going around tarnishing my name in the party. I was not shaken because I realised that this is political battle,” Segokgo said on Sunday at Letlhabile English Medium school.
Segokgo urged BMD members not to allow Nehemiah Modubule and Gilbert Mangole to hold any meetings or constituency congress in their wards or constituencies without the attendance of the suspended senior members.
“This is our party and we need to protect it. We cannot just watch people destroy our party,” he said.
Segokgo belongs to a team called Gaolathe/Mmolotsi that is at war with Modubule/Mangole team. Different speakers said reconciliation has failed amongst leadership and some did not even attend meetings when their council of elders wanted to intervene.