Serious people in our country have internalised the reality that BCP is an indispensable feature of our democratic landscape. In the fourteen years of existence, the party has provided an effective alternative political platform for thousands of Batswana.
The BCP has and continues to hold the ruling party accountable on many areas of national life including on matters of the economy, education, health, housing, human rights, governance and many others. We have previously published Democracy Alerts to appraise the nation and the international community on the state of our economy. Very soon, we will publish the 4th Alert.
We have and we will continue to engage the different institutions of democracy to tackle injustice, mismanagement and misuse of public resources. We have and we are the only party in Botswana that has officially engaged the Ombudsman, DCEC and NBB on matters that fall within their purview.
Our representatives in Parliament and in District councils continue to make a sterling contribution to the democratic debates and national development efforts. We are the only opposition party that has ever presented a private members bill in Parliament ÔÇô The Freedom of Information Bill. Several motions originated by our representatives in Parliament have been adopted.
This is a record that presents us as a formidable force of change in Botswana politics. BCP members should not rest on their laurels as we celebrate our achievements. We must aim to do more in the spirit of our founding constitution. We must pursue all opportunities to achieve justice, equality and freedom. We must act in solidarity with the downtrodden at all times.
As a party, we appreciate the support that Batswana has rendered to us over the years. The numbers and facts speak for themselves. Our share of the popular vote grew from 11 percent in 1999, 16 percent in 2004 and 21 percent in 2009. We have registered a five (5 percent) growth in every election.
By 2009, in a pact with BAM, we returned five members of Parliament. For the record, we are the only party that has retained all our MPS to date. Our impeccable record of stability has earned us two additional MP’s namely Hon Mabiletsa of Kgatleng East and Hon Rammidi of Kanye North.┬á
We have also received several high profile members from other parties. Our war chest as we approach the 2014 elections has been expanded and strengthened. Unlike in the formative years, as a party we are determined to field candidates in all constituencies on offer. We are encouraged by the interest in our party in places that we hitherto had a negligible presence.
Our records show an upsurge of support in places like Letlhakeng, Ghanzi and Kgalagadi where we previously did not field candidates. As a party we believe that a bit more effort could earn us a growth rate of more than 5% in 2014. We are now an established political entity and we have earned the trust of many in our country.
As we enter the home stretch towards 2014, we would like to urge BCP members to maintain greater focus. We would want them to prudently deploy their energies and resources. We have a lot on the table.
The process to deliver the 2014 Manifesto is underway. We are consulting party members and other stakeholders for input into the process. We expect all our members to give this exercise undivided attention. We are preparing for primary election which is also an involving process. We expect all our members across the country to contribute towards the smooth conduct of the primary elections. 
We have a Congress scheduled for July 2013 in Selebi Phikwe which is tasked with adopting the revised constitution and the 2014 manifesto. We must also get involved with the national voter registration exercise which is also a demanding exercise. These activities require plenty of energy, time and resources. They will require concentration and paying attention to detail.
BCP members should be aware that their success as a political and administrative unit shall invite commendation and praise from some people. But it could also trigger fury, anger, disdain and envy from other quarters. Many will try to find fault even where it does not exist. Some will spread falsehoods about the party and its leaders while others will concoct imaginary tales of instability within the party.
Others, like one Spencer Mogapi of the Sunday Standard, have resorted to sensationalized portrayals and rumbling about how the party is run. The man does not have a clue as to how the party manages to keep structural coherence and unit of purpose and, out of frustration, he decided to be fictional about our operations. How sad! His template about a disorganised and chaotic opposition political formation does not fit our profile. Now he claims the party is run by outsiders. Spencer should have a little more respect for the BCP and its leadership.
The naïve detractors use even cheaper methods to try to discredit us. They simply generate loads of rumour, ring alarm bells about BCP and hope that confusion might reign in our midst.
BCP members should be vigilant but they should not expend energies in engaging baseless speculation and wild rumours about their party. We should ignore envious detractors who seek to distract the party from the critical tasks at hand.  We should stick to our priorities and carry out our responsibilities with dignity and integrity as we have always done.
We urge all BCP members, sympathizers and well-wishers to redouble their commitment and sacrifice for the party and the country.
*Lucas is BCP Information and Publicity Secretary
