Khama under pressure to fire Merafhe - claim

Staff Writer | Friday July 30, 2010 00:00

 

It is said there is a growing lobby within the party to request President Ian Khama to ditch Merafhe to stem the tide of defections to the breakaway Botswana Movement for Democracy (BMD).

While Mmegi has been unable to find anyone who admitted that he or she is gunning for the Vice President's head, very senior members of the party have confirmed that there is a lobby to cut Merafhe loose. The lobby started a few weeks ago, but this time round with more BDP members having left the party, the group is growing in confidence.

'I am aware of this lobby and it openly campaigns for support among cabinet ministers, MPs and other senior members of the party. In fact, some of the people pushing this idea are cabinet ministers and some very senior members outside Parliament,' said a senior BDP official.

Another BDP official said that nowadays, members of the lobby do not even hide their intentions.

Information reaching Mmegi is that although daggers are out for Merafhe, no one seems to be pointing out his major misdeamonour to warrant his political sacrifice.

'He is just a fall guy. The party realises that it probably mishandled its problems and they need to stem the tide now. It appears one of the ways to try and stem the tide is through pushing Merafhe out so that a Barata-Phathi high priest can be accommodated to appease those BDP members who might be thinking of going or even to have those that have left reconsider their stand. Merafhe himself is a hawk and has not been helpful in managing the A-Team and Barata-Phathi conflict. His departure could help placate the troubled BDP supporters,' said a source.

It would appear that the plan is that once Merafhe is ousted, he would either be replaced by Ponatshego Kedikilwe or Daniel 'DK' Kwelagobe.

Over the weekend, Kedikilwe and Botlogile Tshireletso addressed  BDP supporters in Kweneng who even after the meeting decided to come and register their concerns with Khama.

Apparently the delegates from Molepolole made it very clear that the BDP problems cannot be solved unless there is a cabinet reshuffle that will bring back Kwelagobe and other Barata-Phathi stalwarts as ministers. It is said they made it very clear to the President that if Kwelagobe is victimised, they will all defect with him.

Even those who are close to the President do not want to say whether he sees the departure of Merafhe and a cabinet reshuffle as a solution.

'I am not aware that people are agitating for Merafhe's removal. I only hear rumours,' said one of Khama's confidantes.

While some believe that the removal of Merafhe could lead to more war fronts for the BDP, others say it will take the battle to BMD. 'If Khama appoints DK into cabinet. The BMD will be without its magnet and some in the BMD might want to come back,' said a source. But another BDP insider disagrees. 'The moment Khama fires Merafhe, there will be another faction that the BDP will have to deal with. Merafhe has supporters too,' the source said.