Opposition should learn from history :: Mmegi Online

As the opposition bloc under the guise of the Umbrella for Democratic Change (UDC) is still smarting from a major split that shook the Botswana Movement for Democracy (BMD), resulting in the birth of the BMD’s splinter party, Alliance for Progressives (AP) recently, Mmegi Staff Writer RYDER GABATHUSE and Correspondent SIKI MOTSHWARI JOHANNESS observe that even as similar events incessantly repeat themselves, politicians do not seem to learn anything from history

Events that characterised the BMD in the last few months clearly prove that history is not always the best teacher. Recent events in the opposition bloc have raised many questions as to whether the opposition will ever learn from past experiences. The confusion reigning supreme in the present opposition ranks is not a new phenomenon. It is the exact replica of the political imbroglio that engulfed the Botswana People’s Party (BPP) in the early 1960s.

Towards Botswana’s inaugural general election of 1965, a schism amongst the big three leaders of the BPP ensued. It gave birth to three small and insignificant political formations, Philip Matante’s BPP 1, Motsamai Mpho’s BPP 2 and Kgalemang Motsete’s BPP 3.

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