The Presidential Affairs and Public Administration Minister explained that he was standing in for President Ian Khama who could not attend the massive rally due to official commitments. "Khama had wished to be here," he said. He opened his address by paraphrasing words from the 1965 BDP manifesto, authored by the first president, the late Sir Seretse Khama. The quote says that: "Given the choice of words and rhetoric associated with the opposition politicians, it shows that they will never be good rulers".
Kwelagobe said only the BDP has the interests of the masses at heart. "Given the calibre of the opposition politicians that you know here, you can't take the gamble and waste your valuable vote. The only party that stands for your interest is the BDP." He listed destitute ration, needy children assistance, old age pension scheme, orphanage assistance, Self Help Housing Agency (SHHA), drought relief scheme in the local authorities as some of the people- centred initiatives started the BDP government. He regretted that some people do not see the good work the BDP government is doing. He slammed people who spend time drinking and then claim that the government is not doing anything for them. He said that BDP parliamentary contestant Kgosi Tawana and his team of council candidates are the right people for the constituency.
