Botswana Democratic Party (BDP) Council of elders has appealed to opposition parties to resolve their conflicts before the 2024 general elections.
The BDP Council of elders committee Chairman, Patrick Balopi indicated that a disjointed opposition could stall the implementation of the ruling party’s promises.
“It is unfortunate that opposition parties are always fighting amongst themselves. That has a serious bearing on our democracy. Having opposition parties bickering every single time in the lead up to the general elections automatically gives the BDP state power,” he said.
“BDP should not gain state power on the back of opposition backbiting but instead they should win power because of their promises as well as sound implementation of those promises,” said Balopi.
He further said a matured opposition should be able to provide checks and balances in the country’s democracy, highlighting that in the absence of this, the BDP led government could faulter.
“I believe that when it is time for the BDP to become opposition, we will assume the responsibility knowing that there is need for us to be united. As the BDP we wish to be elected back into power but not at the expense of opposition instability,” added Balopi.
The former Speaker of the national assembly further indicated that for the BDP, they should ensure quick service delivery in order to retain trust and credibility of Batswana.
For his part, former cabinet Minister Peter Siele also echoed the sentiments saying that opposition has been given a mandate by the public to hold the BDP led government to account.
“One expects the opposition to be hard at work providing solutions to the BDP led government on how to deal with the current challenges as we are now battling a pandemic. They should be speaking in one voice because that will give BDP a run for their money,” added Siele.
He further said although the BDP could use opposition troubles to quicken service delivery, they have since encountered a challenge of dealing with virus, adding that state funds that were intended for developments have now been diverted to fighting the virus.
Since the 2019 general elections, there have been a series of media reports indicating that opposition parties are in disarray.
Recently, Botswana Patriotic Front (BPF) Suspended Party President Biggie Butale on allegations of sexual assault, with some pointing fingers that it was a deliberate ploy by some central committee members to oust him.
On the other hand, Botswana National Front and Botswana Congress Party have allegedly been at war over each other.
Two months ago, the Botswana Congress Party Central Committee convened a virtual meeting to receive reports on the party program from the National Executive Committee. This was a routine meeting of the central committee at which the state of the organization is reviewed by its leadership and decisions made on the future of the party.
Given some developments within our national political landscape, there are speculations that have been made regarding the future of the Botswana Congress Party in the opposition coalition. The speculations suggest, among other things, that the BCP is planning to exit the Umbrella for Democratic Change and will contest the 2024 general elections as a stand-alone party.
The BDP has been in power since 1966, but saw its share of the popular vote sink below 50 percent for the first time in elections in 2014, as it paid the price for sluggish economic growth and high youth unemployment.
In the 2014 general elections, the four parties – the Botswana National Front, the Botswana Movement for Democracy, the Botswana Congress Party, and the Botswana People’s Party – split 53.55 per cent of that vote between them.
The new Umbrella for Democratic Change coalition was “a response to a plea by the people for the opposition to stop splitting votes and work together,” said BNF president Duma Boko at the time.
