BMD wars: A new party in the offing

Chakalisa Dube | Friday July 21, 2017 18:00

 

The two factions, one led by Ndaba Gaolathe and the other by Nehemiah Modubule, ended up holding separate congresses in Bobonong. Each faction elected its own leadership in what many observers said was a battle to gain control of the party.

Gaolathe was elected the president of his faction, while advocate Sidney Pilane was elected president of Modubule’s faction.  

The congress was characterised by fighting between the two factions, a development that left at least four people with severe injuries and hospitalised.  Some members of a faction led by Gaolathe are said to be thinking of forming a new party because they believe constant factional battles are impacting negatively against the party and the opposition coalition.

The proposed party is likely to be called Botswana People’s Movement (BPM) or Botswana Progressive Movement (BPM) should its formation become a reality. Yesterday, unconfirmed reports indicated that the Gaolathe faction has gone as far as drafting a constitution for their proposed party. The members hold a view that they have enough members and can form a new party and be subsequently welcomed into the Umbrella for Democratic Change (UDC). Members are also of the view that they enjoy sympathy from other UDC leaders and thus their readmission into the opposition coalition is a given. Some are said to be against the idea of forming a new party, insisting that the new political formation may struggle to find its footing, a development that may paralyse the progress of the UDC going into the 2019 general elections.

Instead, they believe they should sustain their fight to gain total control of the BMD. Early this year, a new party backed by the Gaolathe faction was said to be in the offing. The idea was later abandoned. At the weekend, rumours of a possible new party grew louder. This week, one of the leaders of the BMD associated with Gaolathe did not rule out the possibility of a new party.

“If a majority of our members feel that we should form a new party, then we will do so,” he said.  Political commentator, Ndulamo Morima also said that in order for sanity to return to the BMD, its warring factions should permanently split and form separate political entities. “From my observation, both factions cannot work together. There is a lot of mistrust. One party has even been accused of working with the DIS to reduce the winning prospects of the UDC in 2019. Their relationship (between factional members) is irretrievably broken. When the two factions have split, the strongest group will show itself,” Morima said.

The political commentator added that the stronger party (from the BMD split) would inevitably remain within the UDC, which will improve the coalition’s chances of winning the 2019 general elections or scoring convincing results. “The BMD split will inevitably weaken the UDC and some members (from the splitting BMD) may even retrace their footsteps to the ruling party. However, apart from splitting there is no alternative because I do not think the two groups will ever work with each other.”

Morima further stated that it would be appropriate for the BMD to split sooner than later. “Splitting earlier will help the two parties regroup in time. An early split will also afford each party to prepare for the 2019 general elections which are getting closer,” he said. 

He said that his other wish is to see UDC leader, Duma Boko and trade union leaders intervening in the debacle involving the BMD factional leaders. “I however, do not think any reconciliation efforts may be fruitful. The poor relationship between the two factions has reached uncontrollable heights.”

According to Morima, the fights within the BMD might further dent the winning chances of the UDC at the 2019 general elections.

“There is a widespread strong perception that opposition parties have a tradition of fighting and cannot govern the country. What happened in Bobonong has cemented such perception and may turn out to be among the factors that will give the Botswana Democratic Party (BDP) an edge at the 2019 general election,” Morima opined.

Just before the break of violence in Bobonong, Gaolathe cautioned the BMD members against fighting saying that it may work against the party’s fortunes going forward.

His message however, fell on deaf ears as just an hour after his address members of his faction engaged in a brutal fight with Modubule’s supporters. Even Gilbert Mangole who was elected the secretary general of the Modubule group acknowledged that the fighting might work against the BMD and the UDC going forward.

Added Morima: “You should also understand that some BMD members who won the 2014 general elections were not of good quality. They won because many people were not happy with the BDP at the time. If the BMD does not resolve its problems within a reasonable time, the development will certainly derail the prospects of the UDC in 2019”.

On the other hand, another political analyst, Leornard Sesa said that forming a new political party by either of the BMD factions is not ideal. He said that a newly formed party could struggle financially as it tries to consolidate itself. He also believes that a new party may appear less credible to Batswana.

“I assume that the UDC is a government in waiting. Should they win power, they will almost come face-to-face with troublesome characters on a daily basis. If they cannot deal with characters that are deemed troublesome at a party level, then it will be difficult for the them to convince voters to go for them,” he said.  

Sesa is of the view that a neutral mediator “who is not affiliated to any of the factions should be appointed to help solve the leadership problems at BMD.

“There are very credible organisations in countries such as South Africa who in my view can be appointed by the UDC and warring BMD members to play a mediation role if at all the opposition is serious about winning power in 2019”. Also, said Sesa, the UDC may be negatively affected by the formation of a new party.

He said if a new party is formed and then welcomed into the UDC, the development might mean that certain arrangements within the opposition coalition have to be reviewed. He said that the review might take time, which may not afford the UDC enough time to prepare for the 2019. Yesterday, Mangole said that there is no need for his (the Modubule) faction to form a new party.

“The only BMD I know is the one which held a congress at Matshekge Secondary School. Those who are said to have held a congress elsewhere will form their own party because they are hell-bent on breaching the party constitution,” he said.

The vice president of the Gaolathe group, Wynter Mmolotsi dismissed the notion of forming a new party. “We understand the frustration of some of members, but forming a new party is not an option. We will fight tooth and nail to claim back our party. We are optimistic that we will get our party back,” he said.