It would not be the first time because in 2019 Boko petitioned the court and contested the outcome of the General Election citing “irregularities in some of the constituencies.” Signs are that if Boko does not win the October 30 election, he will cry foul and not accept the results just as he did five years ago when he lost the Gaborone Bonnington North constituency to Anna Mokgethi of the Botswana Democratic Party (BDP).
Although the Court of Appeal (CoA) later dismissed the UDC’s election petitions citing a lack of jurisdiction, Boko entered the new election cycle still skeptical of the electoral system and has even threatened that there would be turmoil if the election is rigged.
As he leads his political organisation to its third consecutive polls as president, on the campaign trail, Boko has shown that he distrusts the Independent Electoral Commission (IEC) and the ruling BDP. He has on numerous occasions thrown threats around pointing out that everyone who attempts to rig the elections, including President Mokgweetsi Masisi and the Independent Electoral Commission (IEC) Secretary Jeffrey Siamisang, would pay with their lives.
As Boko continues to emphasise that anyone who attempts to rig the October 30-slated elections will be “put to death”, signs are he is likely to challenge any unfavourable result.
“We are with them all the way and we are issuing a stern warning to the IEC. Should they try anything to steal the elections, they will lose their lives. There is no time or opportunity for cheating in the upcoming elections,” added Boko.
The UDC leader has been talking about the potential rigging without pause for months and he has somewhat pre-empted a potential loss at the General Election with warnings of fraud allegedly at the hands of the IEC and the BDP. Since last year before the first voter registration, Boko said the more the fraud continues, the more it irks and angers the public leading to public strife. “It will reach a point where people’s emotions will bubble and boil over. Eventually, they will become so fed up that they will take the law into their own hands. This could lead to unwanted civil unrest,” he said indicating rigging could potentially lead to civil unrest.
He said the IEC is sitting on a powder keg, therefore, the slightest spark may ignite a conflagration. He claimed that all the warnings they have issued to the IEC are to prevent civil strife. The UDC and the IEC’s fight in this election cycle started last year when the two battled in court over the former’s request to observe and monitor the voters’ registration period. Although the UDC had initially won in the lower court, the apex court, the CoA, last December ruled in favour of the IEC, denying the UDC the chance to closely monitor and observe the voter registration exercise. Boko emphasised recently that if they spot any irregularity at the polls, they would make sure the October 30 polls are halted until the situation is normalised through their elections pressure group Madibela-Tlhopho.
Madibela-Tlhopho
breathing on IEC’s neck
Madibela-Tlhopho, an official UDC group or arrangement endorsed by the UDC National Executive Committee (NEC) and a project under the office of the UDC president, Boko has indicated that it will be heavily involved in the upcoming General Election. With training and a vibrant social media presence, the group has been laying the groundwork for months to cry foul if the UDC loses the polls. Madibela-Tlhopho, which was conceived to protect the electoral system, has been rattling the IEC asking for a soft copy of the voters’ roll, something that the IEC refused to avail. The Michael Keakopa-led group then managed to get a soft copy of the roll from a whistleblower and eventually publicised it digitally. They have since started exposing what it deems as irregularities.
Madibela-Tlhopho also said they have established that people’s names written in different formats were found on the roll raising suspicions that they could vote multiple times. Last week Madibela-Tlhopho alleged that there are names of deceased persons on the roll and alleged that the DIS agents will be deployed to use those to vote in two weeks. The IEC has since rebutted the allegations and warned the public from following Madibela-Tlhopho’s insinuations.
“The commission further warns the public on the soft copy of a roll that the social media claims to have in possession because the IEC has never shared the soft copy of any roll with any of its stakeholders. Therefore the Commission would not be accountable for any misinformation, harm or falsehood of data arising from the use of the said copy of rolls and publication of voters’ personal details,” IEC spokesperson, Osupile Maroba, said in a statement. Political observers are already fearful that a refusal by any party to accept the opponent’s victory could throw Botswana into political instability. They fear that this could paralyse and throw the country into turmoil. With death threats being thrown around and the anticipation of a disputed election marred by allegations of rigging and fraud, Police Commissioner Dinah Marathe, has appealed for safe, secure, and peaceful elections.
