Tsogwane annoyed by BDP backbench get- together
Meeting perceived to be factional – Dr. Dow
Vice President and Botswana Democratic Party ( BDP) Chairman, Slumber Tsogwane is said to have been unhappy about a gettogether session by the BDP backbench.
The end of Parliament session, which Specially Elected Member of Parliament Dr. Unity Dow planned to host is said to have annoyed the Vice President. According to court documents filed by Dr. Dow in a suit brought against her by Botho Seboko regarding the social media pseudo account known as ‘ France Museveni’, the MP says this is one of the reasons why she became a target together with her businesses. She stated in her replying affidavit that a claim has been made that she has created a BDP faction called ‘ Team Crocodile’ to challenge the President. “This claim followed a plan to hold an end- of sitting braai with my co- back benchers, which plan had displeased the Vice President, Slumber Tsogwane. “Upon my learning that Tsogwane was displeased that fellow democrats wished to share phaleche and some meat, and upon receiving unwelcome attention from DIS agents, I cancelled the event.
“I verily believe that France Museveni learnt about the planned event from the
DIS and chose to deliberately distort the information about the reasons for the meeting. “Curiously, after I had challenged a DIS officer on their uninvited and suspicious attendance at Ntefo Guest House, the DIS officer offered to rent my apartments in Mochudi. I curtly rejected the proposal,” Dr. Dow said. She argued in the papers that France Museveni’s targets are those that are perceived by the DIS to have either one way or the other wronged the presidency or the DIS itself. The idea is to strike fear into the hearts of judges presiding over matters the DIS is party to, political contestants within and outside the BDP, business people or any individual perceived to be against, or critical of the presidency or the DIS, she added. She stated that on the other hand, the account extols President Mokgweetsi Masisi and the DIS Director General Peter Magosi. “More importantly. If indeed the applicant believes that he is a complainant in a criminal case, the appropriate relief is for him to report the matter to the police. Legal arguments will be advanced on this point. “I specifically assert that it is the office he works for and for which he acts as the Director of Research and Analysis that can return this country to the rule of law and abandon the rule by France Museveni. “The applicant’s assertion that he is concerned that victims of France Museveni may harm him is laughable. The applicant is well aware that France Museveni has the power to cause reputational harm to his victims as well their arrests and detentions, confiscation of CCTV footage, confiscation of laptops and phones without cause or lawful proceedings. “By simply launching this lawsuit, the applicant has weaponised France Museveni’s against me,” she said. Dow stated that the people living in fear are France Museveni’s victims, not those favoured by the troll and its managers. Dr. Dow asserted that the applicant is inviting the court, in the course of a civil application for an interdict, to make a finding that a crime has been committed. “That is not a competent conclusion in this case,” she added. “In the event that this application is not dismissed, either on points of law raised and/ or on its merits, and the hearing of oral evidence becomes necessary, I will approach this court for the issuance of a subpoena and a search warrant of relevant Facebook records in accordance with Facebook Subpoena or Search Warrant Guidelines.”