Lack of congress resolutions suicidal

3476,Tsaone Basimanebotlhe,php5334.tmp.jpg, | Tuesday May 3, 2016 00:00

Only resolutions taken by the congress are binding to the party and to party leaders. Failure by the congress to come up with resolutions, end up forcing either the party mother body or youth leagues/wings to take steps and decisions on their behalf. Congress resolutions help the party to come up with policy direction, issues that concern members that they want to be addressed amongst other things.

The debates at the congresses that were building and enhancing democracy within the parties are also dead. Even party committees need mandate from their members to implement certain decisions. At some point other political parties are forced to keep on calling special congresses to give them a mandate.

Over the weekend, the Botswana National Front Youth League (BNFYL) congress failed to come up with resolutions. The newly-elected BNFYL president, Khumoekae Richard  admitted that there were no resolutions.  “The reason my message is, ‘Is never again’ is because we want to inform our members that the party will go back to its tradition. The party debates will be revived. At the next congress, we will have resolutions and we will account to members. We aim to draft a BNFYL economic, political and academic freedom charter. As we assume power, we promise to put the draft in place within six months and the other six months will be for BNFYL structures to discuss and make input where necessary,” Richard said.  Richard said the reason why it is important for them to revive political structures is for members to understand the importance of congress and conference. “Members cannot debate their political issues when they are not empowered,” he said.  Richard’s predecessor Kemmonye Makatane admitted that his committee has failed to call a constitutional congress to adopt the new BNFYL constitution.

“BNFYL has since 2007 had a new draft constitution that was supposed to be adopted because its constitution was outdated,” Makatane said.

Political analyst, Anthony Morima said he has been observing the trend from all political parties that there would go to the congress and fail to come up with resolutions.

“This is very suicidal for the parties and dangerous again to the members. The party members should not allow themselves to be clouded by elections of either central committee or youth committees without giving party policy directions. That vacuum of failure to give party mandates is the one which ends up causing disputes in parties because the executive committee will have to make its own policies and make a waiver to certain clauses in the party constitution. For example, the Botswana Movement for Democracy (BMD) was supposed to discuss issues concerning joining and rejoining of the party at its congress in Gantsi, but rather it concentrated on elections. The members had time to request for its leadership to discuss the constitution, but it didn’t happen,” Morima said.

He said the reason parties are not growing is because members have also forgotten their role in the congresses and they do not make their leadership to account. Morima said it is high time all parties go back to basics.

Morima said parties should take congresses seriously as some members may one day hold their leaders at ransom. “Parties are no longer run by members, but individuals. Power is now concentrated on elected members, but not  the general membership. Members will one day take their leadership to court for implementing things that they did not give mandates on,” he said.