Some members of the Botswana Democratic Party in the Mmadinare Constituency are believed to have endorsed a candidate to replace the current MP, Ponatshego Kedikilwe, at a fundraising dinner in Mmadinare during the week.
Members of ruling party who were at the fundraising dinner with the Vice President are alleged to have endorsed the Assistant Minister of Presidential Affairs and Public Administration, Gloria Somolekae, though the party denies the claims.
The members of the ruling party in the area also stated that they will endorse her for the candidature for the area after other would-be candidates failed to honour and volunteer towards the function that was attended by party leadership.
Some members of the Mmadinare committee have clearly stated that Somolekae is tipped to replace Kedikilwe after she came from as far as Gaborone to participate at a successful fund-raising dinner.
The committee members view her presence at the dinner event, which was not attended by the other would-be candidates for the parliamentary seat, as a clear sign of her endorsement.
Other aspiring candidates were shocked to learn that the fund-raising dinner was used a campaigning  tool.
One of the possible candidates to stand for Bulela Ditswe, Molebeledi Chilly Montsho, stated that his absence was a result of family commitments.
 Montsho explained that he will read malice if the fundraising was used for  campaigning. He said that he was in the committee that organised the dinner until at the last minute.
“I was the one who even designed and printed the program for the event. I know that I even made sure that I put Somolekae in the programme because there was nothing wrong with that. I knew that we were working for the party not for the campaign,” said Montsho. He explained that he pulled out at the last minute to attend to his family commitments.
Montsho said that if indeed there are some people who were using the dinner as a campaign it was unfortunate, adding that even if he has shown interest, he would not use the dinner to campaign.
“I was just participating as an ordinary member of the ruling party because the party has not yet announced the names of the candidates for Bulela Ditswe,” added Montsho.
However, Kefentse Mzwinila stated that he was surprised to hear that some members had stated that they will not support them because they had not attended the dinner. He said that he was outside the country.
┬á“I won’t believe that some people were using the dinner to campaign. We are not even aware who the candidates to battle it out at Bulela Ditswe are. I bought twelve tickets worth P1500 ┬áfor some people who had requested me to buy them tickets. Even if I had been there, I was going to attend as an ordinary member, not as a parliamentary candidate,” said Mzwinila.
He added that it is against party rules for some members to use the function as a campaign tool.
The BDP Secretary General, Mpho Balopi, has refuted claims that they had endorsed Somolekae as a better candidate to replace Kedikilwe as MP for the area at the fund-raising dinner in question.
Balopi indicated in an interview that no one had ever endorsed Somolekae during the fund-raising dinner which was attended by the Vice President. 
Balopi disputed claims that Somolekae was endorsed by the Mmadinare Branch Committee and the party leadership that attended the dinner. He added that anyone who says that he endorsed Somolokae could have been warned to desist.
Balopi said that the function was graced by BDP members who volunteered to make the fundraising a success, adding that Somolekae was just volunteering herself like other BDP members. 
Balopi further noted that, currently, the Central Committee has not yet released the names of those who will be contesting for Bulela Ditswe.
Some members of the Mmadinare Branch of the Botswana Democratic Party are believed to have hinted that they would support Somolekae.
Somolekae is tipped to replace Kedikilwe with the support of President Ian Khama who brought her to parliament as one of the Specially Elected Members of Parliament.
Other candidates appear to be heading for a difficult path since the Somolekae┬ábecame Khama’s confidante, tasked with what the opposition terms “pet projects, such as Ipelegeng and Backyard Gardens.
The fundraising, which officially is said to have been held to raise money to revive party structures in the constituency, netted P61 000.
Kedikilwe has already announced that he will not be contesting for elections in 2014. 
