The either suspended or self-reinstated president of the Botswana Patriotic Front, Reverend Biggie Butale, once did the unthinkable and was called 230 kilometres away to be warned about his actions.
During a 2021 National Executive Committee (NEC) meeting, Butale got as overly assertive with former state president and party patron, General Ian Khama, as to call him a “dictator” to his face. Besides Khama’s younger brother, Tshekedi, Butale was the only other NEC member to have served in Khama’s cabinet and would have known how many red lines he had crossed by uttering that word. The incident was followed by an elaborate damage-control exercise that, in one episode, took the form of a meeting in a Tswapong village. Khama himself tried to get the NEC to pass a motion of no-confidence in the leadership of a man he is now keen to have reinstated as president.
As patron, Khama attends NEC meetings and as an indication of seniority in the party, his name appears before the president’s in the minutes. Something quite unusual happened at a meeting that he attended in June last year. One agenda item was the alleged sexual assault on a university student by Butale. However, no headway was made on this item as Butale raised technical legal arguments – an NEC source says that he insisted that the Committee “didn’t have jurisdiction” over the matter.
When Khama challenged his views, Butale questioned his membership of the Committee, noting that the party constitution didn’t make provisions for a patron. Shortly thereafter, Butale exploded and called Khama a “dictator” as he stormed out of the meeting.
Days later after this meeting and 230 kilometres away from Maharaj Hotel where the BPF meeting had been held, Butale met with four other members of the NEC. The members were Kagisano Tamocha, James Kgalajwe, Lazarus Lekgoanyana and Baemedi Kudumane. The meeting took place in Shakwe, which is located 30 kilometres east of Mahalapye, a little way off the road to Machaneng.
In a small village, the presence of the five NEC members didn’t escape the attention of some residents and shortly thereafter, the Regional Secretary of the Central East Regional Committee wrote a letter to Tshekedi in his capacity as Secretary General. At the next NEC meeting, Tshekedi alerted other members about this meeting as reported in the letter he had received. Reacting to this news, Khama said that while Butale had the right to address meetings, he had to inform the NEC. Resultantly, the meeting resolved that “every member of the NEC who wants to visit structures should do so through the secretariat, failing which they will be taken to disciplinary hearing.”
Evidently still smarting from the “dictator” slight, Khama said that Butale “has gone rogue on the NEC” and that he should not be allowed to continue. The Deputy President, Caroline Lesang, proposed that the NEC should pass a motion of no-confidence on Butale. She received support from the Deputy Secretary General, Vuyo Notha and Reitumetse Aphiri, the Secretary for Education.
However, the discussion took a different turn when Kudumane intervened to tell the meeting about the Shakwe meeting. First noting that he didn’t support Butale, he revealed that the Shakwe meeting wasn’t Butale idea but that of the four other NEC members who attended it. Minutes of June 28, 2021 says the following: “He said they called the President to warn him about the manner he did talk to the Patron.” Kudumane advised that it would be a bad idea to proceed with the motion of no-confidence.
The next speaker, Kganetso Motswasele, introduced a new subject: a national tour to update structures about the state of affairs in the party. However, Khama wanted a resolution to be taken on the motion of no-confidence, telling the meeting that “the motion of no-confidence should go ahead.” He also “prayed that all NEC members should stand on principle to defend the party. He also revealed that while Tamocha, Kgalajwe, Lekgoanyana and Kudumane had told him that they had asked the President to apologise”, he never did so. The BPF patron insisted that the NEC should “send a message out there that the NEC has lost confidence in him [Butale] as a leader, let people know and let him also know.”
Ultimately, the motion of no-confidence was ditched in favour of a resolution to refer Butale to the Disciplinary Committee.
In a letter addressed to regional chairpersons, Tshekedi also referred to the two incidents in question. He wrote that Butale “admitted to amongst other things, touching and kissing the young lady at his house but denied any other actions.” However, he wouldn’t allow the party leadership to quiz him over this matter.
“He, however, attacked the NEC and called it a gathering that he does not recognise and one that cannot make any decisions on him. He further said that the NEC is just a kangaroo court that cannot make any decisions. Upon being requested to respect the NEC, he verbally attacked both the Party Chairman and Vice President; and called the Party Patron a dictator who has no right to attend NEC meetings,” Tshekedi wrote in his letter, countering with regard to the latter: “It is a BPF Congress resolution that the Patron be a member of the NEC and attend NEC meetings.”
Subsequent to this fracas, the party suspended Butale and only reinstated him as an ordinary member this year. Having consulted with his lawyers and after being furnished with a favourable legal opinion, Butale gave a press conference a fortnight ago to announce that he was reinstating himself as president. The NEC rejects that and has issued a charge sheet that directs him to appear before the Disciplinary Committee to answer a complaint made against him by the varsity student.
“The DC has satisfied itself with its investigations and findings on allegations against you of a conduct of sexual harassment and sexual misconduct, and putting the party and name of the party into disrepute and causing harm to the party,” the charge sheet reads.
At this point, the battle for control of the party is playing itself out in another realm – the High Court. Judgement in a case between BPF/Lesang and Butale/Tshekedi will be handed down this coming Tuesday.
Recent developments in the party have been quite dramatic – they have pitted the Khamas and Butale on one side against the NEC on the other. It is unclear whether or not Khama has forgiven Butale for calling him a dictator. The more pressing issue for now is an elective congress that is scheduled for the end of this month. Tshekedi is living in self-imposed exile in South Africa and has no realistic chance of winning the presidential contest against Guma Moyo, the former Tati East MP. In the circumstances, former Palapye MP, Moiseraele Goya, was brought in as a replacement but the Khama brothers are said to be unsure of his level of support within the party. Resultantly, they are said to be mulling the idea of replacing Goya with Butale. For as long as that remains the case, Khama is willing to forget that Butale once called a dictator to his face.
