A reflection on Mmopane by-election

| Friday August 3, 2007 00:00

The performance of the party shows that the BCP has increased the votes it attracted by over 100 percent in less than three years. A total of 811 valid votes were cast and the BCP captured 44 percent of the votes, compared to the 16 percent that the party had captured in 2004, showing a quantum leap of 28 percent.

It is necessary that the results of the by-election be contrasted with the 2004 results as we have done above. Like all by-elections, only voters who had registered to vote in the 2004 general elections for the Mmopane were allowed to vote over the weekend. The results show that the BCP has been able to increase its votes, while other contesting parties attracted less votes. These results show that the people of Mmopane found the campaign by the BCP and its candidate to be the most credible. We are convinced that it was on the basis of the message of the BCP as detailed in our various policy documents such as the Democratic Development Programme and the 2004 election manifesto that more voters continue to be attracted to the BCP. It should be remembered that the BCP registered electoral growth in a number of by-elections that have been held ever since 2004, while our opponents fared poorly.

The Mmopane ward has been a strong hold of the BDP since independence. Our victory demonstrates that with clear focus and dedication, the voters of Botswana are prepared to entrust the responsibility of governance to other political players besides the BDP that has dominated our political landscape since independence. It cannot be true that no single opposition party will ever defeat the BDP. The BDP can be taken on and defeated even in its strong holds as long as the voters are convinced that one of the participating opposition parties has presented itself as a viable alternative, as has been demonstrated in Mmopane.  This however, is not to suggest that the unity of opposition parties is not desirable. Unity remains a noble objective that we will forever pursue for as long as it remains rational to do so. It is for this reason that as a party we continue to work with the New Democratic Front as well as vigorously pursue possibilities of cooperation with Botswana Alliance Movement (BAM) and the Social Democratic Party (SDP). It must however be stated that where such unity is not attained with some parties, it does not follow that the BDP will have a free reign over the opposition. They can be defeated even at times when they profess to be stronger and more united than before.

As with previous elections, the Mmopane by-election provided an opportunity for the BDP to abuse the national resources for its political gains. In the run up to the election, the issue of land, in particular the possible relocation of people within the ward was a contentious electoral issue between the BDP and us. The different candidates offered divergent views on how they think the matter should be addressed. Less than three days before voting day, the Minister of Lands and Housing Ramadeluka Seretse convened a hastily arranged kgotla meeting in Mmopane ward. The kgotla meeting was geared at rebutting the approach adopted by our candidate during the campaign on the issue of the possible relocations. Fortunately, the people of Mmopane were able to see through the mischievous agenda of the Minister and were not swayed by his ill-timed intervention. Though it was convened as an emergency meeting, the Minister, clearly indicating that there were unstated motivations for the kgotla meeting, made no new announcements. Our view is that the Minister should have pursued his agenda of attracting voters to the BDP through the common platform of the freedom square, where we would have had an equal opportunity to engage him.

Finally we wish to most heartily thank the people of Mmopane for rallying behind the BCP. We trust that they will enjoy better quality representation through Phagenyane Phage as their representative. We also wish to pay tribute to our volunteers who campaigned tirelessly for the BCP against all over resourced BDP opponent.

Dumelang Saleshando
Information & Publicity Secretary, BCP