It emerged from the 2009 general elections with six Members of Parliament before losing three - Olebile Gaborone and Mephato Reatile to the ruling Botswana Democratic Party (BDP) and Isaac Mabiletsa who joined its offshoot, the Botswana Congress Party (BCP).When MP Kentse Rammidi defected from the BDP, he joined the BNF only to leave a little later for the BCP. These are some of the problems that the BNF will have to grapple with as it endeavours to revive its fortunes. Internal party wrangles, mainly during elections, make most of the party's problems. These have resulted in the party losing control of Gaborone constituencies - Gaborone North, Gaborone South, Gaborone West South and Gaborone West North - which once formed its unassailable strongholds.
In Ghanzi, the BNF which has since gone joined the Botswana Peoples Party (BPP) and the Botswana Movement for Democracy (BMD) under the aegis of the Umbrella for Democratic Change (UDC), would like to maximise opportunities arising from the political relationship.For sometime now, the BNF has been operating as a regional party with a very strong presence in the southern part of the country. The party structures in the northern part of the country are either dysfunctional or non-existent at all. This is an issue that the BNF congress will definitely have to debate if it is to make an impact as an Umbrella partner. The theme of the congress, Unity in Diversity Towards Emancipation of Batswana in 2014 and Beyond, is more timely and relevant to the cause of the BNF and its UDC partners.
