5 BCP cadres in race for SG position
In anticipation of the Botswana Congress Party (BCP) elective congress expected later this year, five party cadres have indicated their interest to contest for the position of secretary general.
Speaking to this publication in an interview, former trade union leader who is now a Member of Parliament (MP) for Maun East, Goretetse Kekgonegile announced his intention to contest the secretary general’s office.
“The BCP believes in democracy hence our demand for the democratisation of the Umbrella for Democratic Change (UDC).
“I believe that in a democracy, time and again people must be called upon to exercise their democratic right to either vote, endorse or simply engage and guide the leadership at a congress. The people must never be left behind as is the case right now”, Kekgonegile said.
He believes his experience in leadership having led Botswana Land Board and Local Government Workers Union BLLAWU) and Botswana Federation of Public Servants Union (BOFEPUSU) puts him in good stead.
“This is a pivotal position and I am the only one who has the necessary qualifications to occupy it. I am well grounded in our ideology as BCP. Having risen through the ranks of the BCP, I am more conversant with the party,” Kekgonegile, who was in the party Shadow Cabinet in 2014 and member of the central committee, said.
His view is that, the failure by the UDC to resolve its problems is not because they are complex but because the UDC is not committed to facing its issues squarely.
“We need to win in 2024 and bow out to the next generation of leaders in 2029. The first thing I will do if elected to the party executive committee is to empower the party structures so that they can effectively supervise the organisation at the lower levels.
“These structures have to be empowered to supervise the councillors and Members of Parliament (MP) and not the other way round”, said Akanyang Letsweletse, who is vying for the secretary general office as well.
His position is that a big divide between the party structures and elected representatives is growing.
“Should I be elected, I will make sure the party structures and elected representatives work together more closely for the benefit of the people”, he pledged, adding that he would like the party voters’ roll to be reconfigured such that if the ward is constituted by several villages, each village has got its own voters’ roll to avoid people voting more than once.
Letsweletse would like student politics to be taken more seriously. “Instead of being supervised by the party Youth League, student politics should fall directly under the party National Executive Committee (NEC) where the students may be nurtured and groomed more effectively.
“The organ should be in the party constitution and under the supervision of the mother-body. This way, we can better develop our youth to become future leaders”, Letsweletse noted.
He will rebrand the BCP by empowering structures and training party cadres among other things. If elected, his office will demand a qualitative quarterly report.
“We will also have a human resource database where local structures work with experts in the area for the benefit of the community”, Letsweletse explained.
While he does not condone the use of foul and abusive language on social media, he does not think parties should muzzle the people by outlawing the use of social media.
“Debarring people from communicating on social media will bottle them up and there may be an explosion at some point. Social media is here to stay and the sooner we accept that, the better. Let the people talk but try to instil maturity in the engagements”, the 31 year-old Letsweletse who does not condone indiscipline, said.
Morwadi Morwadi, whose roadmap consists of three items, is yet another candidate for the BCP secretary general position.
“My roadmap entails the rebranding of the party, its consolidation and the forging of relationships. We need to keep rebranding our party so that we have a clear identity and a clear message”, Morwadi said.
He would also want the BCP not to relax following the ‘’remarkable gains’’ the party made at the last elections.
“If elected, I will come up with clear strategies for the retention of our members because that is important. We should not only retain the wards and constituencies in our hands but must turn them into our strongholds”, Morwadi noted, adding that it is important for BCP to go out of its way to forge relations with like-minded organisations such as unions and political parties especially outside the UDC.
The other two BCP cadres in the race for the secretary general position are the current MP for Nkange, Dr Never Tshabang and Montsho Montsho who could not be reached for comment by press time.