Yeah, I know the Queen’s language can be so damn confusing to a lot of people. Some people will only read my headline and assume I mean the BMD should disband and join Boko’s party. No, that’s not what I mean by BMD coming to the party. What I mean is, Duma Boko has played his part in ensuring the umbrella project continues and it is now for the BMD to reciprocate and prove their commitment too. We all know the sacrifices that Boko has had to make in his quest to protect the umbrella project. Boko has been crucified and given all sorts of demeaning and derogative labels by those who are against his support for the umbrella. He remained unequivocal and unshaken. Boko had a choice. He could have easily opted to side with those who wanted the BNF to work with the BCP at the exclusion of the BMD. He however chose to stick with the BMD even as that choice came with ramifications that included defections of some people in the BNF leadership.
It was Boko who stood up and stopped a coup against the BMD’s Botsalo Ntuane when some BNF and BCP MP’s wanted to kick Ntuane out of the Leader of Opposition office. Infact his detractors are now spreading propaganda and labeling him a disguised BMD member. The BMD can, and must, show some appreciation towards Boko’s gesture of commitment towards their parties’ unity. The BMD do not only owe this commitment to Boko but the nation at large. The umbrella project is said to be a national project and as such the commitment of the involved parties must be visible to the nation. While I want to implore the BMD to show their commitment and avoid being distracted by trivial issues as has happened during previous attempts which saw the collapse of the first negotiations, all I can say is, ‘so far so good’. I can see mutual understanding at play.
I got worried when a newspaper ran an article about Boko’s statement that he is the president of the umbrella party. No, I wasn’t worried that he had declared so. I was worried that the article had reported some un-amusement from the BMD on Boko’s declaration. That is the danger of reading headlines and not reading the whole article. Newspaper headlines can be so deceiving and misleading. I didn’t understand how the BMD could not be amused by Boko’s declaration for the umbrella presidency and as I read through the article I realized that the journalist was misleading the readers because there is nowhere in the article where the unhappiness of the BMD is mentioned by anyone from the BMD. It turned out it was all in the imagination of the journalist. And journalists complain when Boko complains about their unbecoming behavior of putting their opinions as facts. Look, it really shouldn’t be a big problem who takes the umbrella party presidency because what matters the most is, all three presidents of the participating parties will still be ‘in the mix’ once the umbrella party gets into power. Previous attempts at opposition cooperation failed due to the scramble for positions and I don’t want to believe that was not lesson enough for the current umbrella builders. For the sake of unity, and for the fact Boko has always made known his ambitions to become umbrella president, the BMD should allow him to take the seat and have Motswaledi deputize him and find the third most high position for Molapise. I know both Boko and Motswaledi are young men with good qualities of leadership. These are young guys who, when they talk, you suddenly find yourself rich enough to pay attention. You just cannot ignore them.
I always tell people that in order to win elections, you need money and charismatic candidates, in that order. Now, with Boko as president, the umbrella party can easily attract loads of money from outside the country. With Motswaledi the party can attract a lot of sympathy from locals. Boko has connections in Hollywood. He is friends to American celebrities and here we’re talking of people who have enough money to roll out like toilet paper. Boko has an impressive track record as an advocate for human rights and all you need is to display his CV in the American and British media and because those two nations value and uphold human rights, they will be more than willing to dole out money for his campaign. Through his advocacy for human rights, Boko has shared the stage with ‘big’ personalities like Bill Clinton and we all know what positive influence his chit-chats with this former American president can bring for the umbrella party. Boko has fought for many citizens whose human rights have been trampled upon by the current government and therefore it is safe to believe he will not turn his back on these people once at the helm of the country. I’m not endorsing Boko for umbrella presidency. All I’m saying is I don’t see why he can’t be the president just as I do not see any problem with Motswaledi being president and Boko becoming his deputy. All I’m saying is, the two leaders should be very careful not to allow the thought of being called ‘first citizen’ cloud their good intentions of opposition cooperation.
Another word of advice to the BMD would be, the party should be very careful not to lose members out of issues that could have been easily addressed. The BMD was formed because people felt the BDP leadership wasn’t accommodative to divergent views from members. I’m saying this because I understand some members of the party feel the party abhors divergent opinions. Before it was clear which BNF ‘faction’ was going to win the day at the Mahalapye congress, some BMD members are said to have come up with the idea of working with the BDP. This was apparently only a suggestion because really, any party should have ‘plan B’ in its strategies. There was Boko’s side which advocated for the umbrella with BMD and there was Mabiletsa’s side which was against the idea.
Therefore it was very important for the BMD to have a second choice in the case Boko’s side lost at the Mahalapye congress. Instead of crucifying those who called for cooperation with the BDP, the
BMD must respect their opinions for they were just that-opinions.
That said, I still remain optimistic about the success of the umbrella party even without the BCP. Yes, I’m of the view the BNF, BMD and BPP can still pull through and become a formidable force to reckon with. The success of the umbrella party lies solely on the attitude and approach of the leaders of the involved parties. Duma Boko, Gomolemo Motswaledi and Motlatsi Molapise have the power to make or break the umbrella party. They can screw it together or have it screwed up.
I have had the chance to attend the three parties’ combined political rally at Tsamaya village some few weeks back. I have also had the opportunity to attend the BMD Policy Forum in Selebi-Phikwe over the weekend where the leadership of BNF and BPP were among the guests. The rare political harmony displayed by the three parties at all the forums aforementioned gives some glimmer of hope on opposition unity. I have never seen members of three different political formations display such a spirit of oneness. Should those hugs and smiles remain permanent and all that lovey-dovey reception become standard practice – I tell you opposition politics will never be the same. I am not here to recite poems. I am here to state facts, of course as according to my observations and conclusions. The BNF of Duma Boko is not your usual BNF embraced by the likes of Gabriel Kanjabanga who have no shame going on national television to say there is absolutely nothing wrong with a political party being in opposition for over hundred years. I listen to Boko and Motswaledi’s statements and I detect people yearning for State power. They sound young and restless. They are also lucky to have an elderly person in Molapise who can always prod them into line when they get overly excited.
