Ryder Gabathuse
21 April 2005
Francistown — When the Botswana National Front (BNF) central committee members descend on Gaborone for a meeting on April 30, there will be no love lost between some of them. Tempers are likely to flare at the meeting as some members have already started pointing accusing fingers at each other.
Certain members are complaining that their colleagues are employing "undemocratic" tactics geared at destroying them.
Billy Makuku, the BNF director of elections, recently said that he has withdrawn from running for the position of party chairman because "it is apparent that there are some comrades who are bent on assassinating the characters of others". The issue is likely to spring up at the party congress in July.
Makuku recently said that factionalism is brewing hatred in the party.
He told Mmegi yesterday that it was unfortunate the party leadership is ignoring actions that threaten stability. He said an "obnoxious" letter is circulating around and the party officials are aware of it but have failed to act.
"The BNF executive is aware of what is going on. Generally, what is going on is against the principle of the party and threatens unity that exists in the BNF and is just ignored because some executive members of the party condone it," he said.
Makuku indicated that some party members have since branded him and the BNF vice president Kopano Lekoma, secretary for legal affairs Patrick Kgoadi and Moses Bantsi as a Concerned Group - a term used to describe dissidents. "That is a name that we are called by our adversaries. The name is not used in any good spirit," he said.
Makuku admitted that there was a problem in the party and the central committee itself.
Some party faithful have confided to Mmegi that there is a task force appointed to review the central committee positions. Already talk has it that positions like those currently held by Makuku, Kgoadi and Rhoda Sekgororoane (sports and culture) are likely to be abolished. Some members are convinced that the issue is going to be hotly debated at the central committee meeting before it is passed to the forthcoming July congress. There is a feeling that positions were targeted to render some people powerless in the party.
BNF secretary general Akanyang Magama disassociated the party leadership from the letter in circulation. He stressed that there was no threat to the stability of the BNF.
"As the party leadership, we are not aware of that letter. I only heard there is such a letter in circulation, but it is not sanctioned by the party leadership. Why should we send an official party document to the media? It is not in our tradition to do that," he stressed.
Magama confirmed that a task force was constituted last year at a party annual conference in Selebi-Phikwe to review the central committee positions. The task force did not target any politician or a group within the party. "The reasons advanced by the conference delegates were reasonable as some of the positions were not functional at all," he said.
Magama stressed the noise made by some party members does not pose any threat to stability. He regretted that some candidates withdrew from contesting positions because of the said letter. "As a party, we know that party business is discussed at relevant forums and not in the media," Magama said.
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