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Motaosane amongst four survivors of BDP's deadly crash

Motaosane
Motaosane

THAMAGA: As the Botswana Democratic Party (BDP) investigators sift through a mangled wreck following last Wednesday's deadly crash, only four red survivors remain.

Mabuse Pule, Karabo Gare, Kagiso Mmusi, and Palelo Motaosane have emerged as the only parliamentary survivors after the BDP experienced its deadliest election crash since independence in 1966. Even at the top of BDP's tree, there were no survivors as the country's First Citizen and former president, Mokgweetsi Masisi was a victim of his parliamentary candidates' failure to garner sufficient votes.

His number two, Slumber Tsogwane's dream of ascending to the top seat was brutally shattered by Sam Digwa in the Boteti contest. Secretary-general Kavis Kario was also not shown any mercy in Ngami. The calamity was not confined to certain geographic locations, but was felt across the length and breadth of the vast expanse. As the results trickled in, Masisi was shocked and so too was the victor, Duma Boko at the margin of the annihilation. But from the rubble, the BDP, which rapidly fell from being the ruling party to a minority opposition, had four members still standing despite a crash that reduced the once-dominant force into a mangled metal. In the Thamaga-Kumakwane constituency, Motaosane, like many other democrats, was expected to canter to victory with little challenge from the opposition.

Motaosane has emerged as the honey badger of the peri-urban Thamaga-Kumakwane block but had to sweat blood this time around to return to his parliamentary seat. In 2019, the diminutive former councillor thrashed his rivals with a margin of 10,000 votes. Even in this year's primaries, his nearest opponent, Tiro Lepotokisi could only garner just 900 votes whilst Motaosane had more than 3,000. He has become a dominant and popular figure in the constituency largely due to his close relations with the community. But this year, he had his heart in the mouth moment, as the Thamaga-Kumakwane results were announced well after Motaosane had learnt of his party suffering its first ever defeat in a general election. His margin this time fell below 2,000.

The now-ruling Umbrella Democratic Change (UDC) had won six out of eight council wards in Thamaga-Kumakwane, which gave every reason for a previously assured Motaosane to be nervy. But he is convinced the fall of the BDP was self-inflicted through a perfectly executed inside job. "I knew I was going to win because I have worked hard and I work closely with the community. They know how I relate to them. I know why my councillors lost. Some of our candidates who lost during the primaries worked with the opposition. They had the audacity to transport opposition members to polling stations. I have evidence of that. It's not all of them," he said in an interview. "The opposition knows that they didn't have the numbers in Thamaga-Kumakwane. Even countrywide, the issue of our members voting for the opposition can't be ruled out," he added.

Motaosane and the three other survivors will now take up their positions in Parliament, minus the privilege of being ruling party members, but with an unusual tag of minority party MPs.

Editor's Comment
A step in the right direction

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