Pilane accepts BMD ordinary membership
Oarabile Mosikare | Friday November 3, 2017 12:22
The UDC president, Duma Boko has refused to accept the current leadership of the BMD led by Pilane and called on the troubled movement to hold a fresh congress. In a recent letter to the BMD, Boko wrote: “The UDC NEC took the following decision, which it directed me to communicate to yourselves.
“Consistently with the decision it delivered in the BMD mediation, the circumstances leading up to and including the holding of the Congress at Matshekge did not conduce to the holding of a free, fair and credible Congress. Resultantly: no proper and acceptable leadership or Executive Committee could reasonably have been constituted by the said gathering;
“Now that the power sharing arrangement proposed and urged by the UDC is no longer possible as the other group has quit, the BMD must consider the establishment of an interim leadership to hold the fort and steer the organisation to a proper and credible congress which it shall hold no later than end of January 2018. This interim leadership should, to avoid any controversy, be made up of the remaining members of the BMD NEC elected at the organisation’s Gantsi Congress in 2015.
“Once the interim leadership is in place, BMD may appoint four members from the interim leadership to represent it at the UDC NEC and thus ensure BMD’s participation in UDC meetings and affairs while working on preparations to convene a Congress and duly elect its proper leadership”.
In a leaked BMD WhatsAPP statement, Pilane said he was glad that Boko affirmed that the BMD remains a member of the UDC. “That is the most important thing. Had they made any decision that sought to suspend or expel the BMD from the UDC, I would have fought them with everything I have,” Pilane wrote.
He pleaded with other members to accept the Botswana National Front (BNF) and Botswana Congress Party (BCP) decision “and do as they say in order to deny them the excuse to continue excluding the BMD from the UDC activities”.
Boko is also a leader of the BNF and Dumelang Saleshando leads the BCP. “The effect of that decision is to remove me from the presidency of the BMD, and I am fine with it. I will attend the NWC [National Working Committee] meeting tomorrow [Thursday] go laela NWC, and then I will leave you so you deliberate. I am the person most affected by the decision and cannot participate in any decision you make upon it.”
He added he would also not go to the National Executive Committee (NEC) meeting on Saturday. “I will revert to the status of ordinary member of the BMD, but nothing else will change… If you feel that you want to deploy me in any role, I will consider and probably accept; what I cannot do is participate in any decision that the Ghanzi NWC and NEC make as I am conflicted. Go tlaa siama.”
After Boko’s press conference, Pilane wrote that he did not agree with the decision announced or with its reasons.
“As I have said before, I would never participate in any role that influences, directly or indirectly, the identity of the people who are in the leadership of another political party as I do not believe that I could ever appear to the onlooker to have done so objectively,” the advocate wrote. He added that the big picture, and not egos or personal interest, are what must matter. He said the BMD has to make a decision that affects its vital interests without regard to how they might affect individuals, and how these individuals might feel.
“Honour requires that they be given space to do so. My guidance to them is that they must accept the recommendation announced by Rre Boko this morning and work with the UDC going forward. My plea is that a way must be found to draw the BPP [Botswana People's Party] back in, now that the BMD has been drawn back in. I don’t really believe that the leadership of the BCP and BNF really believe they alone, without the BMD and BPP, can be the UDC. I urge the BPP to accept the BCP as a member of the UDC, and for all the four parties to close ranks and go forward together, disregarding all else.”
A public statement released by BMD national spokesperson, Rasina Rasina said because the BMD NWC was already scheduled to meet yesterday and an agenda already agreed and sent out, the UDC/BMD issue will be discussed on the arising matters agenda item.
“We on the same note plead with members of the BMD, sympathisers and well wishers to within reason and logic wait for the leadership to provide guidance,” Rasina wrote. He said they plead with members, well-wishers and sympathisers of the BNF, BCP, and BPP that they understand that it is not an easy space they find themselves in.
“The BMD leadership assure all that, on whatever decision the BMD make, it shall do so with outmost consideration to the interests and aspirations of this nation and the world.
The BMD also makes this assurance again that; as a full member of the UDC in good standing, we remain fully committed to the UDC, its constitution and its ideals.
The secretary general, Gilbert Mangole remains in constant touch with all structures of the BMD, including but not limited to; our regions, our council of elders, our wards and our branches.”