This resolution was made here at the BNF annual conference held over the holidays. “For emphasis, there will be compliance with BNF Electoral Rules to ensure free, fair, and credible process of selection of party candidates for 2024 general elections,” BNF Secretary General (SG) Ketlhalefile Motshegwa revealed in a statement.
In the past BNF president Duma Boko has always hinted that the party will choose candidates instead of primary elections as is the norm with many political parties locally. Already incumbent BNF legislators and councillors are automatic candidates for next year’s general elections. With disgruntled ally Botswana Congress Party (BCP) having announced that it will contest next year’s general election outside the Umbrella for Democratic Change (UDC), it means that some wards and constituencies will be up for grabs for interested BNF members.
That will be possible if the BNF secures certain wards and constituencies ahead of other allies being Botswana People’s Party (BPP) and potential ones being Alliance for Progressives (AP) and Botswana Patriotic Front (BPF). All involved parties are yet to hold constituency talks and the plan is for the BNF, AP, BPP and BPF to contest under the same coalition being the UDC next year.
With the consensus approach most certainly going to cause chaos and to some extent divisions, BNF has also resolved that there will be an expedited approach or process of settling disputes arising from primary elections, because prolonged grievances tend to affect the party’s campaign for general elections.
The BNF has also resolved to set the living wage at P4000. Initially the UDC, a coalition which the BNF is a member of had set the minimum wage at P3000. Addressing BNF members here during the BNF conference, Boko said the living wage proposition of the UDC assures a decent livelihood for those in gainful employment and uplifts them from their sub-human existence into a life of decency and dignity. “In 2019, the UDC set a bold amount of P3000 which offers an entry point into a life of dignity and reasonable compensation to our people for their labour. The UDC stands firmly on this proposition and will assess the figure with a view to adjusting it upward as we approach 2024,”Boko highlighted.
Boko said the clamouring critics have insinuated that the economy cannot sustain such levels. “The suggestion, especially when the proposition is applied to the private sector is that businesses would collapse. This suggestion is predicated on an exploitative framework in which the private businesses must continue to generate astronomical levels of profit on the sweat and toil of workers whose labour is grossly undervalued and the surplus they generate goes onto the pockets of employers as profit while workers drown in poverty and deprivation,” he explained.
Boko added that the proposition by the UDC flips the script and demands that a rise in tide must raise the boats on both sides of the divide. With the BNF having set the minimum wage at P4000.00, all eyes will be on the UDC and whether the coalition will adopt the same resolution especially since Boko as doubles as UDC president.
