Private newspapers are awash with stories on the impending split of the BDP.
It is reported that members of Barata Phathi faction met over the weekend and made certain demands to the party leadership.
These include the reinstatement of Gomolemo Motswaledi, the restoration of the central committee that was elected at the Kanye congress, the drafting and immediate enactment of a law on declaration of assets and, most importantly, that the party president should desist from being a leader of the A-Team faction.
It is not in dispute that the BDP is at war with itself. It is in turmoil. It is in a sorry state.
President Khama is tearing it apart with ease even though he was brought in to unite the two warring factions. He is using defective party and country constitutions to annihilate a faction that opposes the one that he leads.
He is of the view that his word should be final and should not be challenged under any circumstances. He instills fear in the hearts and minds of people who do not agree with him on how things should be done. It is either one is with him or with the enemy, as President George W. Bush once put it following the terrorist attack on the United States in 2001.
The President has personalized the party and state power to such an extent that only those who agree with him will survive and further their political careers. Only his cousin and a few trusted lieutenants can be involved in dubious and corrupt practices without attracting the wrath of the President.
This is a group of the untouchables who can do as they please knowing that they are well protected.
They tell the President what he wants to hear and not what is in the best interest of the party and the nation. They have the power to lay charges against members of the rival faction and can recommend swift punitive action against them.
The party parliamentary caucus determines what each MP can and cannot say in parliament. It is a structure used by the BDP leadership to muzzle vocal MPs, particularly those belonging to the Barata Phathi faction. It is used to stifle debates and democracy.
Citizens who criticize the so called “new programmes”, which are attributed to the President, are viewed as enemies of the state and receive messages of intimidation.
People like me, who have worked for the government in the past, know that there is nothing new about programmes such as Ipelegeng and ISPAAD. The only thing that has changed is the names because the former used to be called Labour Intensive Public Works while the latter is a combination of the defunct ALDEP and ARAP. The only thing that is new and that does not add any value to the lives of Batswana is the constituency football league. It is a total waste of our tax monies, particularly at a time when the country is struggling with a huge budget deficit.
The problems bedeviling the BDP can never be resolved because the main problem is the party leader. This is a man who believes that rescinding a decision he made earlier on is a sign of weakness. On the basis of what he has done to the vocal members of the Barata Phathi faction so far, I do not envision a day when he will extend an olive branch to them. He had an opportunity to unite the party after the Kanye congress but he went on a mission to destroy it.
It is against this background that I believe that a BDP split will go a long way in enhancing our democracy. It will allow MPs to debate national issues without fear or favour.
An increase in the number of MPs challenging the ruling party will give our parliament the teeth that it needs as an important organ in a democratic set-up. A split will signal the beginning of an end for the BDP which seems to be characterized by arrogance and personalization of state power.
The statements that were made by the VP regarding extra judicial killings, their intention to rule the country militarily and the tabling of motions in parliament are just some of the things that indicate the arrogance and care free attitude of the BDP top brass.
A split will, therefore, force the President and Vice President to stop taking Batswana for granted and desist from making decisions on impulse.
Pertinent decisions affecting citizens should be based on an objective analysis of the prevailing situation instead of the things that are disliked by the President. His decision to increase the price of alcohol again is based purely on impulse and his dislike for the same rather than on any concrete data that has been presented before him.
How does one explain a situation where 18-year-olds are allowed to vote and join the disciplined forces and are at the same time to be banned from drinking alcohol?
If they can make decisions on serious national issues, such as electing councilors and MPs, defend the country and pay tax, why should they be told that they cannot touch alcohol until they are 21 years old? Why should our leaders also tell us how we should dress when there are pertinent issues that they should be addressing with the main intention of improving people’s standard of living?
Faced with these challenges, we need men and women in parliament who can defend the rights and freedoms of citizens without fear or favour. I believe that members of Barata Phathi faction who are already in parliament can measure up to the task. Hence, they should go ahead and form a new party so that we as citizens can continue to live in a democratic society where people can choose what they want to do as long as it is within the boundaries set by the constitution.
The new party will save us from drifting into a dictatorship where the government regulates our private lives.
A split will force the President to accord the MPs the respect that they deserve. In our political set-up, one would expect the President to care about MPs of his party because they are the ones who make it possible for him to be the nation’s leader. Since our President seems not to care about the consequences of a spilt, the same will help him realize that he is not a team unto himself but just one of the team members who has to appreciate the contributions and views of other members.
It will help him realize that he is not immortal and at the end of the day, democracy will win.
*Dr. Mothusi is Lecturer in the Dept. of Political & Admin Studies (University of Botswana)
