The Opposition Must Put House In Order

Monitor Editor | Monday September 25, 2017 11:17

The opposition has been preaching unseating the ruling Botswana Democratic Party (BDP) for the longest time, but sadly of recent, they seem to be more engaged in bickering rather than strategising on how they are going to increase their numbers in Parliament.

Formation of Umbrella for Democratic Change (UDC) in 2012, gave those discontent with the administration of the ruling party hope that power might change hands in the near future. In forming the UDC, opposition parties aimed to challenge the BDP as a united front starting from the 2014 general elections. While the number were not enough to unseat the BDP, the UDC did good, as it managed to get 17 out of the 57 parliamentary seats, while BCP, which at the time was out of the coalition only got three.

Individuals who don’t support the way BDP runs the government were not unreasonable to hope that someday the opposition might takeover as the numbers seemed encouraging, especially after amassing more than 50% of the popular vote. But Batswana’s hopes were soon dashed. The strong leadership disagreements, which divided the Botswana Movement for Democracy (BMD) into two factions, seem to be spilling over to other political parties, adding to other challenges that already exist within the parties and the coalition as well.

The Ndaba Gaolathe faction, announced a breakaway party from the BMD on Wednesday, Alliance for Progressives (AP). The news was well received by some, while other people expressed disappointed at the way the disagreement was resolved. Social media platforms have been abuzz with citizens giving their views on formation of the new party, as well as UDC intervention recommendations for resolution of the stalemate between the two BMD factions. Many expressed that they had lost hope that the opposition will ever unseat the BDP.

These developments of course make the BDP and its supporters very happy, as some are already using the instability that existed within the BMD, to discredit the opposition, arguing they cannot be trusted with running the country, if they are failing to run their own parties.