As I read the Watchdog column in the Sunday Standard of 24-30 July 2010 I could not help but remember that in Setswana we have two hearts. It may happen that one heart may want me to go to Bonwapitse and the other to Mochudi. I do not believe that anyone can claim that choosing which heart to follow is a rational process. One just chooses which heart to follow by gut feeling.
Sometimes you create factors that allow you to choose which heart to follow. The minute you introduce factors that guide your choice, it is not really about what one heart says as opposed to the other. It then becomes a rational choice. Once it becomes a rational choice logic sets in. You weigh all the factors for and against a particular heart’s position and see on which side the scale tilts.
In simulation on the other hand you create a machine, make certain assumptions, environments and allow inputs to see where things will go. Let us for a moment assume that society is a machine.
Supposing you have two very powerful men in a given society. One of them is in the executive (we shall call him A) and the other is an ordinary member of parliament (we shall call him B). Supposing each one of them is backed by a distinct businessman. A is backed by C and B is backed by D. Businessman D is then charged with corruption.
A few days after businessman D is charged with corruption, businessman C is likewise charged with corruption. The person in charge of the simulation has to make a decision of whether there is more than meets the eye. The charging of businessman D with corruption obviously threatens B’s financial strength. Would one be entitled to suspect that B called on a few favours to get businessman C likewise charged with corruption to get back at B.
I believe in Setswana when events pan out like this we say, “dialwa”, they are fighting. We are seeing a few powerful men facing charges of corruption. In the past I have suggested that we need a corruption amnesty. I based this on the fact that we are a new nation and that quite obviously mistakes have been made. Further, investigation is a tool that has limitations. Our leaders ignored my suggestion as is their privilege. I still think we need a corruption amnesty.
The opposition may be happy that people close to the ruling party are facing corruption charges. I, however, believe the current prosecutions of cabinet ministers set a very high standard for the opposition. If the opposition were to win elections in 2014 without having assessed the corruption history risk of their representatives, will they survive as a government if after forming a cabinet some of them are charged with corruption? The opposition may in future regret its failure to support a corruption amnesty.
In the final analysis I think we may yet get to thank Rre Khama. Because the opposition is being forced to vet its candidates, to ensure that there are no surprises if it were to win elections, we are likely to get a better caliber of leader in the near future. If this is what Rre Khama intends to achieve then he is a friend of the opposition. It is not a bad friendship but a positive one. A true friend demands and gets the best out of you. In this sense my suggestion of a corruption amnesty may have not been such a good idea. This is where one wishes to apply the two hearts method.
Those who surround Rre Khama to feed at the trough are in a very precarious position. He will not be able to protect them in much the same way that he has been unable to protect his cabinet ministers from prosecution. I have in the past argued that in terms of our constitution a president can sit with and be friends with corrupt people, but they cannot trust him. We are yet to see a president turn a state witness, in a corruption prosecution, but I have no reason to believe that it cannot happen.
When Rre Khama resisted Rre Motswaledi he used the immunity given him by the constitution on the basis that he had a duty to uphold the constitution. From my observation of the man, it is highly unlikely that this was a one off application of the principle. One critic has accused him of failure to prevail over the DPP to stop prosecution of his cousin for fear of competition. The DPP is supposed to act independently of anyone. Rre Khama is being accused of upholding the constitution. This is ridiculous to say the least.
In my view the opposition is being shaped by Rre Khama. It may not like this but it is happening right in front of our eyes. They should however not despair. Some of them are physicists and know that space is shaped by objects. They know that objects with a large enough mass even have the gravitational pool to bend light.
According to the Watchdog column Rre Kwelagobe does not want to leave the BDP in the hands of Rre Merafhe. There is not a single reference to the defence of democracy in the column. We are not told why it is so important to stop Rre Merafhe’s takeover of the BDP. It is this type of excuse for continued participation in politics that reminds me of the two hearts. There is no real objective reason advanced, just gut feelings. In order to shield Rre Kwelagobe from the accusations supposedly leveled against him, regarding his principles, the column raises an issue which is then determined on the basis of which heart says what.
Both Rre Merafhe and Rre Kwelagobe are now out of their league. There is a new game in town and they are too old to participate. When BMD stepped out of the BDP I suggested that now the opposition was going to be able to place the BDP under a microscope and to expose its blemishes.
The way people are seeing Rre Kwelagobe suggests that they now have him under a microscope, and what they see is not as smooth as they used to think it was. The BMD provides a contrast against which he can be viewed.
Rre Khama has established a direct link with the masses, he does not need any intermediaries (this one I learnt from a member of the BNF, I do not have permission to disclose his name). The reason why some members of parliament from the BDP are opposed to floor crossing has nothing to do with democracy. Rre Khama’s direct link with the masses means they are vulnerable. The only trump card they now have is to threaten to decamp to the opposition. The law forbidding floor crossing will take this card away. That is the real reason why they are opposed to the law on floor crossing.
I believe though that Rre Khama has already tested the effectiveness of the threat to resign from the BDP. Media reports that he said he could not work with a secretary general who always threatened, suggest that he knew he had to test the threat at a very early stage, and determine that it was not a real threat. In fact it is the secretary general who blundered. He tested his strength too early in the day and Rre Khama called his bluff. The secretary general listened too much to what the opposition said instead of assessing the situation and bidding his time. After all a trump card can only be played once.
The situation is now such that Rre Khama is in complete control of the BDP. As some have observed it needs him now more than he needs it. This I believe was where we were a few years ago. This suggests that after all the noise and shenanigans Rre Khama has been able to subdue his adversaries within the BDP. I therefore do not see any merit in the Watchdog position that Rre Kwelagobe is staying in the BDP because of Rre Merafhe. He is staying because Rre Khama is not yet ready to give him an honourable exit. He needs Rre Khama to smooth his exit.
In politics as in life timing is everything. If you miss the tide you are in trouble (Shakespeare I believe). It would be better for Rre Merafhe and Rre Kwelagobe to be nice to Rre Khama for him to facilitate a gracious exit. In this respect I am in complete agreement with the Watchdog column.
The fiftieth anniversary celebration of the BDP will be an appropriate moment. Rre Masire and Rre Mogae can be roped in to welcome them into retirement. To add colour to the event veterans should not be allowed to dye their hair and beards, or come with shaven heads. Transitions require honesty. The old must be seen to give way to the new.
