BNF encroaches into Shoshong

Staff Writer | Tuesday August 3, 2010 00:00

It started with a victory celebration on Saturday by the BNF, when it captured the Bonwapitse ward which for the first time fell into the hands of the opposition.

The BNF was certainly buoyed by the defection of area Member of Parliament Philip Makgalemele from the BDP to the newly formed Botswana Alliance Movement (BMD) and was in Shoshong to cash in on the fallout. The BDP, who did not want to be fazed held a rally to reassure Shoshong residents that there is still life in the party after the departure of Makgalemele.

The BNF won three council wards in the Shoshong constituency in last year's general elections and came in part to open the party constituency office over the weekend and to launch their war plan for 2014.

The party office was officially opened by BNF president, Duma Boko and part of his central committee including national chairman Harry Mothei, secretary general Akanyang Magama, his deputy Nono Kgafela -Mokoka, foreign secretary Reggie Reatile and treasurer and Shoshong parliamentary hopeful Aubrey Lesasu. The BNF constituency office is said to be fitted with internet facilities and will be made accessible to the youth in the village.

Speaking at a rally, BNF officials said they had come to Shoshong to effectively confirm that the BDP was a dying party and that residents should ready themselves for a BNF government. Reatile said unlike the BNF, which had readily admitted that it had been in serious internal problems, the BDP is in denial about its woes. He said the good thing with the BNF is that it has now rid itself of internecine problems and is ready to rule. The terrible thing with BDP, he said, is that it is breaking up while it is in government.

Magama's message was more directed at BNF members reawakening and taking pride in their party. Kgafela-Mokoka's pitch was that the BDP does not care anymore. She cited the case of installing water storm drainage systems in SHHA areas. She said while everybody is still heaping the BDP government with praise for having replaced the pit latrines with a better sanitation system, the BDP government has moved stealthily to slap poor SHHA areas dwellers with a hefty 600 percent rate hike from P20 to P120. She said if it was difficult for people to pay P20, what makes government think that people can now afford a hefty rate hike.'They (BDP) do not care about them and they do not care about you,' she said.

When he stood to speak, Boko was introduced by master of ceremonies Billy Makuku as 'motlogolo wa bo Mandela' hinting at Boko's Xhosa ancestry.

It was all clear that apart from the general message of 'we are rebuilding the BNF' people wanted to hear the party's stand on opposition unity.

Boko said the BNF is ready and waiting for opposition cooperation. He said the party congress did not tie them to any model of cooperation. The BNF president said while they wait for opposition negotiations, life does not come to a standstill. 'We will rebuild our party, set up structures and grow the party,' he said to applause from BNF supporters from Shoshong and neighbouring villages. The rally was attended by party activists from far flung places such as Gaborone and Lobatse.

Boko warned that the negotiations will not be easy and he called on all partners to come to the talks with sincerity.'The BNF should be sincere, the BCP should be sincere and the BMD should be sincere,' he said. He asserted that it would be wrong for anyone including the BMD to think that since they have more MPs after defections, they can lord it over others. He said in 1999, the BCP had 11 MPs from defections but that did not necessarily translate into votes.