As the electoral post mortem of the just ended Letlhakeng by-election continues, it is part of the political rumour mill that the successful ruling party campaign machinery was generously bankrolled by foreign companies including  Chinese construction firms and a Korean car dealer that was recently found to have tried to bribe officials of the Central Transport Organisation.
This begs the question of just why the BDP would be happy to take money from Chinese contractors when it was not so long ago when President Ian Khama, who is also leader of the BDP, told the world that he had lost faith in Chinese construction firm.
How can it be that a Korean car dealership that not so long ago attracted the attention of corruption-busting agencies all of a sudden becomes one of the ruling party’s biggest financiers?
These are not incidental questions with small puzzling inconsistencies.
Rather they are big questions that go to the very heart of just why it is important for this country to come up with a clear framework for regulating political party funding.
A few years ago, BOCCIM, which represents organised business in collaboration with DCEC (Directorate on Corruption and Economic Crime), commissioned a study on political party funding by the state.
The corollary of it all was a well balanced report which made a very interesting read.
Among other things the joint report concluded that an absence of clear rules on political party funding created too many grey areas.
The report, since left to dust somewhere in the government enclave, said absence of a policy would lead to companies and other financiers sponsoring those political parties that promised to turn a blind eye to their own shenanigans.
How is a BDP government expected to take legal action against a Korean car dealer that is such a big financier of BDP electoral campaigns?
There are many, many more questions that come to the fore.
For all its skewed surprises, one thing we must ever cherish to have come out of Letlhakeng west by-election has been to expose the true follies of an absence of clear rules of political party funding. The truth of the matter is that like all other political parties, the BDP is hard pressed for cash.
But the nature of Botswana’s political economy is such that because the state plays a much bigger role in commerce, the same people who are in politics also happen to be the same people controlling capital.
This is a point that cannot be ignored.
With no clear rules, there is always a temptation to stretch one’s luck, and that is exactly what is happening.
Observers can be excused for thinking that a Korean car dealership that was not so long ago involved in shady deals is now actively financing the BDP as a way of mending their damaged relations with Government, who are by far the biggest buyers of their car brands and models.
May be we got the Koreans all wrong and they are perfectly and genuinely interested in Botswana’s democracy.
But then why do they not want to make their contribution to the BDP public, like Kgalagadi Breweries did a few years ago?
If the Koreans have all of a sudden developed a keen interest in nurturing Botswana’s democracy, then why can they not also sponsor other players in the field?
Right now we can’t be entirely sure of the true motives of these political financiers. But it would be a remarkable coincidence that the Koreans could develop interest in politics just shortly after they had difficulties with the law.
