Former president Festus Mogae introduced Khama, the eldest son of Botswana's founding father, Sir Seretse Khama, to politics to leverage on the enduring reverence for the Khama name. Mogae, whose presidency was rocked by serious infighting in the ruling party, roped in Khama to secure his presidency following recommendations of late South African political scientist, Professor Lawrence Schlemmer.Khama lost sight of his mandate and got lost in the factional warfare.
He became the leader of a faction initially known as Mogae-Khama. The faction would later metamorphose into Nkate-Merafhe and later the A-team. Factionalism became entrenched in BDP ranks. Mogae stuck by Khama through it all.To many, the ironic was unfolding; the ship Khama was entrusted with to steer to calm waters was sinking. He was failing to live up to the mandate that saw him resigning from the helm of the army. Although he successfully led the BDP to the 2009 general elections, he has been struggling to bring peace to the ruling party.The BDP witnessed its first split under Khama in 2010, which brought about the Botswana Movement for Democracy (BMD).
