Cde Baleiti Basnah Mbambanyi - a gallant political fighter rests

| Monday August 30, 2010 00:00

Comrade Mbambanyi belonged to the old realm of opposition politicians like Maitshwarelo Dabutha, Tore Lesego, Mareledi Giddie, Joseph Kavindama, Gilson Saleshando, O.K Menyatso, Kays Phitshane, Klaas Motshidisi. This is a generation of politicians who kept the neo-colonial BDP government on its toes for the better part of their lives.

Comrade Mbambanyi spent almost half his life fighting corruption, injustice, tribalism and other social ills that the BDP regime has come to be famous for. He was a very principled politician that no bribery, financial or otherwise, could be used to derail him from his beliefs.

He resigned from the Botswana Police 40 years ago to pursue the struggle, while his peers were swimming in opulence. He started organising the Botswana National Front (BNF) in the former North East at a time when PG Matante's Peoples Party was as hard as the skin of a warthog and the BDP was making serious inroads into the constituency. That was in the early 1970s. He started from scratch, but when he left the BNF for the Botswana Congress Party (BCP) in 1998, he had made its presence felt. Comrade Mbambanyi represented the BNF as its parliamentary candidate in the 1994 general election, but was defeated by the late Jabavu Butale of the BDP.

After decamping to the BCP in 1998, he bravely accepted to stand as the party's council candidate for Zwenshambe in 1999 when the party was only 14 months old. He represented the party again in the 2004 general election in the same ward, but lost again.

In 2009, he could not stand due to ill health, but was usually present in electioneering. Comrade Mbambanyi belonged to that rare breed of politician who would not dump the downtrodden and weak members of society.

Standing up for the poor was his passion. Though he was not well read, having gone only up to Standard 6, he could handle intellectual giants with ease. He was well up to date in current affairs and had a keen sense of history. Comrade BB, as we fondly called him, was second to none when it comes to the political ideas of Lenin, Stalin, Brezhenev, Karl Marx and Frederick Engels. He was a mobile library from whom some of us benefited immensely.

He was fearless and assertive when it came to what he wanted to say. At the village kgotla where those present were invariably subservient, he attracted the reputation of troublemaker because no amount of authority could intimidate him.  Comrade Mbambanyi used to call on presidents, ministers and senior civil servants to tackle them on various issues of policy and governance. But he was not only a politician; Comrade Mbambanyi was also an economic player. As a farmer, he supplied the government's rearing empowerment scheme and the Botswana Meat Commission with his cattle. He was also involved in community activities and projects in Zwenshambe and Ditladi villages. He served on both the board of trustees of Zwenshambe Brigades and junior secondary school. He was also regularly involved in the activities of the village's primary school. Comrade Mbambanyi was born in Zwenshambe in 1939. He attended primary schools in Zwenshambe and completed his Standard six in Mapoka where he was in the same class as Charles Tibone (current Assistant Minister of Finance) who also happens to be his cousin (Tibone's father is younger brother to the Comrade Mbambanyi's mother). He is survived by his wife, four children, three daughters and one son.

I wish his tomb could be prescribed: HERE LIES THE REMAINS OF COMRADDE BALEITI B. MBAMBANYI : A GREAT MAN WHO LIVED AND DIED FOR THE DOWNTRODDEN.

REST IN PEACE COMRADE UNTIL WE MEET IN THE WORLD YONDER.- Comrade Mmoloki Mbiganyi Thomola Francistown