19 Jul 2022

Botswana Congress Party (BCP) conference has resolved to expel its five suspended MPs. 

The five, MP for Selebi Phikwe West and acting Leader of Opposition Mr Dithapelo Keorapetse, Mr Kenny Kapinga  for Okavango, Nkange’s Dr Never Tshabang, Mr Onneetse Ramogapi for Palapye and Mahalapye Mr David Tshere were suspended for attending an Umbrella for Democratic Change (UDC) caucus against BCP’s wishes. 

“The conference has resolved that the five MPs that the party suspended recently should be expelled from the party,” BCP secretary general Mr Goretetse Kekgonegile told a media conference in Mahalapye Monday. 

He explained that in preparation for the 2024 general elections, the BCP would hold primary elections in the five constituencies to choose its own candidates. 

Mr Kekgonegile said the conference also resolved that BCP should remain in the UDC for six months until its demands were met, failing which the party would exit the coalition. 

“We are going to remain in the party for six months until the situation at UDC changes. If nothing changes the conference has given the central committee the mandate to lead the party to a new path that is suitable for the party to work in,” he said. 

He said BPC demands were in line with the agreement made at Gaborone’s Boipuso Hall in 2018 on implementation of the UDC constitution. 

“We are yet to engage with UDC on that matter including the suspension of the BCP party president and secretary general from the UDC national executive committee,” he said. 

BCP president Mr Dumelang Saleshando added that his party wanted the UDC constitution that was agreed on in 2018 to be registered. 

He said the parties under UDC agreed that the constitution should be submitted to Registrar of Societies who later advised them to submit letters from their respective political parties authourising registration of the UDC constitution. 

That had not been done because UDC president Mr Duma Boko reported that the BNF wanted to write a new constitution.

 “That is obviously unacceptable to BCP as we want the constitution we agreed on in 2018 to be registered,” said Mr Saleshando. 

Regarding his suspension and that of Mr Kekgonegile, Mr Saleshando said as long as the suspensions remained in force, the BCP would continue with its court case regarding the matter. 

If UDC admitted that the suspensions were not constitutional and lifted them, the case would not proceed, he said.

BCP revealed that it had introduced ‘democracy alerts’ to alert the nation on anything that threatened democracy in Botswana. BOPA