• Leadership Forum endorses Saleshando’s leadership

By Comrade Mpho M. Pheko

The BCP held a very successful and inspiring Leadership Forum in Palapye on 27 May 2023. The forum was remarkable for the high levels of confidence attendees expressed about the Party’s prospects for 2024, demonstrable unity and cohesion, and confidence in President Dumelang Saleshando and his leadership team. The attendees also expressed commitment to the Party’s inviolable principles of good democratic governance and aversion to state capture.

The Leadership Forum is not a decision-making structure; but a consultative platform at which the national leadership briefs different layers of leadership on the wellbeing of the Party, Central Committee decisions between conferences, developments within the Party and nationally, and any other consequential issues. It also accords other leadership structures an opportunity to give feedback to the national leadership.

The highlights of the forum were as follows:

• 𝐑𝐞𝐟𝐥𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐨𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐭𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐁𝐂𝐏. The forum acknowledged that joining UDC was a draw back as the decision almost contaminated the Party’s values, culture and commitment to good governance, and almost weakened the Party in constituencies the Party did not contest in 2019.  𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐚𝐭𝐭𝐞𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐞𝐬 𝐚𝐜𝐤𝐧𝐨𝐰𝐥𝐞𝐝𝐠𝐞𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐠𝐨𝐨𝐝 𝐠𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐧𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐞, 𝐚 𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐩𝐞𝐭𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐚𝐜𝐜𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐭𝐚𝐛𝐥𝐞 𝐠𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐧𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐞𝐟𝐟𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐯𝐞𝐥𝐲 𝐚𝐝𝐝𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐬𝐞𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐛𝐥𝐞𝐦𝐬 𝐁𝐚𝐭𝐬𝐰𝐚𝐧𝐚 𝐟𝐚𝐜𝐞 𝐢𝐬 𝐧𝐨𝐭 𝐚𝐭𝐭𝐚𝐢𝐧𝐚𝐛𝐥𝐞.

• Unanimous affirmation of the Central Committee’s decision to contest the 2024 elections under its own name, colours and symbols due to:

1. Recognition of the clear threat the BDP and UDC pose to development and national security due to the two Parties’ disdain for good democratic governance and the two Presidents’ vulnerability to capture by private interests.

b)            The UDC’s obstinacy on good democratic governance, which is manifest foremost in its disregard for its own constitution and the very serious and credible allegations of state capture contained in the Moti Files. The Moti Files credibly suggest that to gain state power, the UDC President was prepared to corruptly give Moti control of key state functions and institutions as well as unfair access to economic opportunities. 

• In light of the above, the BCP should work hard to ensure that the BCP Coalition and its strategic partners are positioned to democratically remove the BDP in 2024. Relating to this objective, the forum suggested that the Party should prepare Batswana for a three-horse race in 2024 and highlight how the BCP remains undoubtedly, 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐨𝐧𝐥𝐲 𝐚𝐥𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐧𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐯𝐞 to the moribund BDP.

• Unanimous affirmation of the Party’s commitment to good democratic governance, recognising that it differentiates the BCP from both the BDP and the UDC.

• The overwhelming commitment to the Party and its ideals by the majority of BCP councillors in the face of on-going brazen attempts by the UDC to destabilise the BCP by poaching its councillors.

• Reflections on transformative proposals for a consequential manifesto for 2024 as well as the Party’s election strategy.

• Messages of solidarity from the BLP, MELS and a group of former members of the AP who are committed to a 𝐍𝐞𝐰 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐁𝐞𝐭𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐁𝐨𝐭𝐬𝐰𝐚𝐧𝐚.

• Cde Mpho M. Pheko is BCP Publicity and Information Secretary