According to ex-Botswana National Front (BNF) president, Otsweletse Moupo, such an approach reflects a fundamental misunderstanding of the BNF’s vision and mission. He states in his paper, which he is expected to be presented at the BNF policy forum in Selebi-Phikwe from October 9 to 11, the party’s long-standing struggle was not primarily aimed at securing material benefits for its members. The party members have been very clear about the issue of cadre deployment, and they argue that they had suffered for 58 years under the previous regime because of their political affiliation. Instead, he says, the objective was to establish a just social order in which the state would implement social and economic policies aimed at developing Botswana and improving the livelihoods of the majority. Moupo maintains that any material benefits accruing to BNF members deployed to government structures or parastatals should therefore be regarded as incidental to their responsibility of serving the public.
Moreover, he argues that even if the party were considered to owe rewards to its members, fairly distributing them would be difficult because the UDC’s breakthrough in the October 2024 elections was the product of collective efforts spanning generations of activists.
