03 Mar 2019

President Dr Mokgweetsi Masisi says Botswana Democratic Party (BDP) presidential elections scheduled for Kang in April 5 would be conducted in a free and transparent manner.

Speaking at a media breakfast he hosted at the State House on Friday, President Masisi said the party hold its National Council and presidential elections to ready  for the 2019 general election.

President Masisi said only legitimate delegates would be allowed to participate in the congress.

Dr Masisi, however, said his biggest focus was on the general elections, because his mission was to see BDP winning by a landslide.

“I want to whip the opposition very hard, and I am very convinced that they have very little to offer. But, just to analyse a little bit of things that contributed to our decline in 2014, when we nearly lost the elections and had it not be for the miscalculation of the Botswana Congress Party, we would have lost,” he said.

Furthermore, he said following the analysis, the party found it prudent to target issues that made people move away from them, citing the labour relations which he said contributed immensely in its 2014 decline.

He said the labour movement, particularly the public sector union was stronger than the effect of political parties in opposition and therefore he had to deal with the issue.

President Masisi said the country was besieged by allegations of corruption, adding that he had never attempted to prevent anybody from being investigated. 

“It is our duty to stem out corruption,” he added.

Furthermore, he refuted allegations that government was using institutions of the state to settle political scores. Ends