Ten Gaborone councillors to cross over to BMD

LEKOPANYE MOOKETSI
Correspondent | Friday June 4, 2010 00:00

A BMD official said it is just a matter of time before the councillors cross the floor.  The councilors are expected to announce their resignations jointly.  Two BDP Gaborone councillors Keitumele Gabonewe of Sekgwa (White City) and the youthful Isaac Malipiti of Bophirima in Gaborone West South were amongst the multitude that attended the BMD convention on Saturday.  The two councillors were seen clad in BMD colours during the party's convention held at Letlhabile Primary School in Gaborone.

Malipiti is one of those who also attended the initial Mogoditshane meeting where an idea to form the BMD was hatched.  Malipiti became a councillor for the first time last year. His ward was dominated by the Botswana National Front (BNF) for quite some time, but the party lost it to the BDP last year.

On the other hand, the veteran Gabonewe has been in council for awhile.  He was re-elected last year.  Gabonewe is from the Gaborone Central constituency which has turned against the BDP.  BDP members in Gaborone Central have never forgiven the party leadership for suspending Gomolemo Motswaledi who was supposed to contest for the constituency.

One of the officials who is at the forefront of BMD, Binkie Kerileng is also from Gaborone Central.  Kerileng used to be a councillor for Selemela ward until last year after she was defeated by a Botswana Congress Party (BCP) candidate.

Meanwhile, Malipiti and Gabonewe have not yet tendered their resignations to the BMD. But many former BDP members who have joined BMD have also not resigned from the BDP.  Some activists waited for the BDP to expel them first.  When they were called for disciplinary hearings, some of them made it clear that they no longer consider themselves to be BDP members. BDP has lost a number of their members to the BMD.  The BMD strategy is to take the BDP structures with them to the new party. Currently the BDP has 31 councillors in the Gaborone City Council while the BCP has eight.

Should 11 councillors defect to BMD, the party will remain with 20.  This means the opposition will have 18 councillors.  BDP took over Gaborone City Council during last year's general elections. 

However, according to information reaching Mmegi, BMD is not only targeting BDP councilors in Gaborone.  The party is intending to recruit BDP councillors country wide and take over some of the councils.  Some of the councilors have already joined the new party. Francistown mayor Shadrack Nyeku has joined to the BMD after he was expelled by the BDP.  Nyeku boycotted the disciplinary hearing which was held by the BDP . 

A BMD official said they are expecting more councillors in Francistown to join their party.  Just like in Gaborone, the Francistown councillors are intending to resign in a group.  BDP executive secretary Dr Batlang Serema professed ignorance that some Gaborone councillors intend to leave the party.  The only thing he is aware of is that some of the BDP councilors attended the BMD convention as 'observers'.