Molepolole not ready for ‘new Botswana’
Despite the hype on social media, with the heavy title ‘mother of all rallies’, by the Alliance for Progressives (AP) and Botswana Congress Party (BCP), the reality was far from matching the buildup or title.
The rally failed to attract a huge crowd, with most attendants being party die-hards as opposed to Molepolole residents yearning for a new Botswana. While the event was set to begin at 3pm, it was only almost two hours later that the thin crowd put a bit of fat on the meat before the event began.
The two leaders, Ndaba Gaolathe of AP and Dumelang Saleshando of BCP, arrived in style in a Mercedes Benz MPV before shaking hands with most of the attendants who had gathered. All suited up, the duo had security detail in black suits flanking them.
Both Molepolole North and South constituencies have always been the stronghold of the ruling Botswana Democratic Party (BDP). It was only in 2014 that the Umbrella for Democratic Change (UDC) won the two constituencies, cashing in heavily on the BDP’s offspring Botswana Movement for Democracy (BMD). The BCP, who were not under the umbrella at the time, did not even bother contesting in the Molepolole constituencies that year.
However, following a BMD split that birthed the AP, the now differently constituted UDC failed to defend the constituencies with the BDP snatching them right back.
In the 2019 General Election, BDP through Oabile Regoeng won Molepolole North with 11,049 votes, UDC’s Mohammed Khan got 4,211 votes, while AP’s Twobar Koontse only managed 1,001 votes. In Molepolole South, Kabo Morwaeng won the constituency for BDP with 10,228 votes, Dr Tlamelo Mmatli of the UDC got 2,733, while Shima Monageng of the AP garnered just 1,471 votes.
Though the turn-up was not impressive, various speakers from the two parties oozed optimism that they are on the right track to taking over State power. Speakers from within the constituency bemoaned that even though their village has a huge population, they decried a lack of development. “In Molepolole we have a hospital without medicine, sheets, and other necessities. We do not have proper internal roads, we struggle with water every day with dry taps. We are also a big village without a proper sewerage system while all other villages in our vicinity have sewage systems. The stormwater drainage is also very bad in our village.
Nothing is being maintained. This is despite the fact that we have a Presidential Affairs minister for a legislator. Ever since he won the elections, he has never cared about the people.
We as the AP and BCP intend to give you a Botswana that will give you hope and opportunities,” Monageng said at the rally. Monageng revealed that their talks were ongoing hence they had their two leaders to prove that.
“Cooperation has been tried many times before. We promise to deliver a new Botswana to you. We have down-to-earth, calm and collected leaders. We also need to be ready to support them. It does not matter when we started as we saw in Lesotho a new party attaining State power,” he said.