Moupo's move is honourable

Editor | Tuesday March 16, 2010 00:00

This is a welcome move indeed. Moupo shows that he is not hungry for power, but would rather pass the baton on to another member of the party to continue building on the contributions he has made.

It is no secret that the position of this paper has been that Moupo should have vacated the seat in the run-up to the October 16, 2009 general election in order to allow the party to fully deal with the challenges facing it at the time. We held this view because Moupo, as a leader, had been so discredited as to make it impossible for the average activist to sell the party to an objective voter.

We also understood then that Moupo, while not being the very embodiment of the problem within the BNF, we thought his departure would have helped set the party on a path towards renewal.

The results from the general election should move every concerned member of the party towards serious introspection. The BNF is at a crossroads. It may take its rightful place in this country's democracy, and it is not a minor player, or it might be reduced to nothing but a footnote when the political story of this country is written. We think the nation needs a united and strong BNF. Opposition politics would be much more viable with the involvement of both the BNF and the Botswana Congress Party (BCP). The Botswana Democratic Party (BDP) needs a strong opposition to keep it in check and Batswana have learnt the hard way, how the turmoil within the BNF caused the degeneration in our democratic state. The current excesses of the ruling party can be partly blamed on the ineptitude of the BNF throughout the last 40 years to offer a viable alternative to the BDP. Only a united BNF, therefore, can be able to work with other opposition parties to offer a formidable opposition to the BDP. Internal tussles have forced the BNF to focus on its own problems when other issues of national interest have been debated - extra-judicial killings, Masire/De Beers/BDP issues and the national budget.

Opposition voices need the input of the BNF. The BCP has done well to put these matters into sharp focus and continue to debate them, however, the big void left by the BNF remains a worry to all admirers and lovers of this country's democratic system.

However, Moupo's move should inspire a new leadership, not tainted by the tussles of the current generation, to emerge. This new leadership should work towards uniting the warring factions in time for the 2014 general election. This is not the time for further strife but a time to restore peace in the BNF house. Only a new leadership has a chance to do that. We, therefore, salute Moupo for offering this party and this country this opportunity.

                                                                     Today's thought'That notwithstanding, I have decided not to defend my position as President or to contest for any other leadership position'

                                                             - Otsweletse Moupo ,  BNF President