Understanding government and opposition parties in Botswana

Journal of Commonwealth and Comparative Politics

Volumn 38, Issue 1, 2000, Pages 65-92

  Molomo, Mpho G ^a  

^a UNIVERSITY OF BOTSWANA   (Botswana)

Author keywords

[No Author keywords available]

Indexed keywords

NATIONAL POLITICS; PARTY POLITICS; POLITICAL POWER;

BOTSWANA;

EID: 0034065335     PISSN: 03063631     EISSN: None     Source Type: Journal    
DOI: 10.1080/14662040008447810     Document Type: Article

References (104)

1. S. Booysen, 'Trends in Party-Political Opposition in South Africa - Ideological Constraints on Policy and Strategy', Politeia 17/2 (1998), 32.
2. H. Marcuse, One Dimensional Man (Boston, MA: Beacon Press, 1966), xvi.
3. K. Mengisteab, 'Demoratization and State Building in Africa: How Compatible are They?', in K. Mengisteab and C. Daddiesh (eds.), State Building and Democratization in Africa: Faith, Hope and Realities (London: Praeger 1999), 23.
4. A. Leftwitch, 'Bringing Politics Back in: Toward a Model of the Developmental State', Journal of Development Studies 31/3 (1995), 401.
5. F. Hayward, 'Introduction', in F. Hayward (ed.), Elections in Independent Africa (Boulder, CO: Westview Press, 1986), 7.
6. Ibid., 8.
7. Booysen, 'Trends in Party-Political', 31.
8. The most cogent examples, among others, are those of Malawi and Zambia, where after decades of de jure one-party rule, upon the re-introduction of multi-partyism opposition parties won elections and formed government. For detail refer to J. Kaunda, 'The State and Society in Malawi', Journal of Commonwealth and Comparative Politics 36/1 (March 1998), 48-67.
9. Ibid.
10. For detail refer to J. Holm, P. Molutsi and G. Somolekae, 'The Development of Civil Society in a Democratic State: The Botswana Model', African Studies Review 39/2 (Sept. 1996), 43-69; P. Molutsi and J. Holm, 'Developing Democracy when Civil Society is Weak: The Case of Botswana', African Affairs 89 (July 1991), 323-40.
11. For detail refer to J. Holm, P. Molutsi and G. Somolekae, 'The Development of Civil Society in a Democratic State: The Botswana Model', African Studies Review 39/2 (Sept. 1996), 43-69; P. Molutsi and J. Holm, 'Developing Democracy when Civil Society is Weak: The Case of Botswana', African Affairs 89 (July 1991), 323-40.
12. B. Ollman, Alienation: Marx's Conception of Man in Capitalist Society (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press), 212-14.
13. Mengisteab, 'Democratization and State Building in Africa', 23.
14. For details refer to H. Nengwekhulu, 'Some Findings on the Origins of Political Parties in Botswana', Pula: Botswana Journal of African Studies 1 (1979), 47-76.
15. O. Nnoli, Introduction to Politics (Ibadan, 1986), 148.
16. Ibid., 148-9.
17. J. Bhagwati, Journal of Democracy 6/4 (1995), 54.
18. Q. Hoare and G.N. Smith (ed.), Selection from the Prison Notebooks of Antonio Gramsci (New York: International Publishers, 1971), 12.
19. L. Picard, The Politics of Development in Botswana: A Model for Success? (Boulder, CO: Lynne Rienner Publishers, 1987), 164-5.
20. Ibid., 165.
21. Ibid.
22. Ibid., 166.
23. President Masire's campaign speech to residents of Gaborone South Constituency, Gaborone, 22 Oct. 1984, 1-4.
24. L. Picard, The Politics of Development in Botswana: A Model for Success? (Boulder, CO: Lynne Rienner Publishers, 1987), 166.
25. The Botswana Guardian (Gaborone), 11 April 1986.
26. Botswana Daily News (Gaborone), 7 April 1996. Despite appeals by the President to his 'tribesmen' in Kanye the electorate, in a by-election, elected the opposition candidate, Leach Tlhomelang, instead of Archie Mogwe of the BDP.
27. Ibid.
28. Botswana Institute for Development and Policy Analysis, Study of Poverty and Poverty Alleviation in Botswana (Gaborone, February 1997), 6-31.
29. Election Manifesto of the Botswana National Front (Gaborone: Party Secretariat, 1994), 6.
30. Botswana Congress Party, Democratic and Development Programme: Programme and Statement of Principles (Gaborone, 1999), 10.
31. K. Mengistead and C. Daddieh, 'Why State Building is still relevant in Africa and how it relates to Democratization', in K. Mengistead and C. Daddieh (ed.), State Building and Democratization in Africa: Faith, Hope and Realities (London: Praeger, 1999), 6.
32. Botswana Congress Party, Democratic and Development Programme: Programme and Statement of Principles (Gaborone, 1999), 16. BCP cautions that BDP economic programmes are not consistent with the basic principles of globalisation. This, it argues is reflected in government readiness to bail out inefficient business undertakings - largely based on kindred, personal friendships and membership of the BDP.
33. Ibid.
34. P. du Toit, State Building and Democracy in Southern Africa: Botswana, Zimbabwe and South Africa (Washington, DC: United States Institute of Peace, 1995), 38.
35. Mmegi (Gaborone), 17-23 July 1998.
36. Ibid.
37. Mmegi (Gaborone), 24-30 July 1998.
38. The Midweek Sun (Gaborone), 24 June 1998.
39. Ibid.
40. Ibid.
41. Mmegi (Gaborone), 24-30 July 1998.
42. To cite just a few examples, the specially elected councillor in Gaborone, Gabriel Komboni, defected from the BDP to join the BNF; in Mochudi, Isaac Davids defected from the BNF to join the BDP, and in Francistown, after Peter Ngoma was expelled from the BPP he joined the BDP.
43. The Midweek Sun (Gaborone), 12 Aug. 1998; The Gazette (Gaborone), 12 Aug. 1998; Botswana Daily News (Gaborone), 11 Aug. 1998.
44. The Midweek Sun (Gaborone), 12 Aug. 1998; The Gazette (Gaborone), 12 Aug. 1998; Botswana Daily News (Gaborone), 11 Aug. 1998.
45. The Midweek Sun (Gaborone), 12 Aug. 1998; The Gazette (Gaborone), 12 Aug. 1998; Botswana Daily News (Gaborone), 11 Aug. 1998.
46. To date, Botswana has a total of 14 political parties. They are: Botswana Alliance Movement (BAM), Botswana Congress Party (BCP), Botswana Democratic Party (BDP), Botswana Peoples Party (BPP), Botswana National Front (BNF), Independence Freedom Party (IFP), Botswana Progressive Union (BPU), United Democratic Front (UDF), United Socialist Party (USP), Botswana Labour Party (BLP), Social Democratic Party (SDP), Botswana Workers Front (BWF), Marx Lenin Engels Movement (MELS) and United Action Party (UAP).
47. Mail and Guardian (Johannesburg), 30 April to 6 May 1999.
48. P. Camay and A. Gordon, There will be Elections...: An Evaluation of the Local Government Elections in South Africa (Johannesburg: Co-operative for Research and Education, 1996), 109.
49. Hayward, 'Introduction', 13.
50. L. Picard, 'Bureaucrats, Elections and Political Control: National Politics: The District Administration and the Multi-Party System in Botswana', in L. Picard (ed.), The Evolution of Modern Botswana (Lincoln: University of Nebraska Press, 1985), 197-9.
51. Ibid., 177.
52. Ibid.
53. J. Holm, 'Elections in Botswana: Institutionalization of a New System of Legitimacy', in F. Hayward (ed.), Elections in Independent Africa (Boulder, CO: Westview Press, 1986), 132.
54. That the civil service is politicised is without doubt. The BDP government openly poaches candidates for political office from the civil service. Opposition parties have also recruited from the public service, but their case is not as dramatic as that of the ruling party. In the present cabinet such candidates include President Festus Mogae, Vice-President and Minister of Presidential Affairs and Public Administration, Lieutenant-General Ian Khama, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Lieutenant-General Mompati Merafhe, Minister of Education, Gaositwe Chiepe, Minister of Energy and Water Affairs, Dr Magret Nasha, and Minister of Finance and Development Planning, Ponatshego Kedikilwe.
55. Kgosi singular and diKgosi plural. DiKgosi are traditional leaders who preside over the traditional jurisdiction of the tribal entities in Botswana and over customary law.
56. Botswana Government, The Tribal Land Act of 1968 (Gaborone: Government Printer, 1969).
57. In Kgatleng West constituency, Thomas Lekoko, at a political rally, insinuated that his opponent, Isaac Davids, was party to the ritual murder of Segametsi Mogomotsi in Mochudi. Following an indictment of defamation of character, Lekoko had to pay Davids a large sum of money.
58. B. Otlhogile, 'How Free and Fair', in M.G. Molomo and B.T. Mokopakgosi (eds.), Multi-Party Democracy in Botswana (Harare: Bardwells, 1991), 26.
59. Pula is Botswana currency. 1Pula = US$ 0.2145. Based on this rate, P2.4 m translates to about US$ 500,000).
60. In another turn of events, an employee of West Bank, Dumelang Saleshando, executive member of the BCP youth wing and son of BCP MP for Selibe Phikwe, Gil Saleshando, was fired from Westbank, a division of First National Bank of Botswana, after he was accused of leaking details of the clandestine funding of the BDP by an external source. However, it was later discovered that the money came from a subsidiary of De Beers, the South Africa diamond mining giant which owns 50 per cent of the Debswana Mining Company. For details see The Botswana Gazette (Gaborone), 26 May 1999.
61. Mmegi (Gaborone), 1-8 April 1999.
62. Ibid.
63. Ibid.
64. Opinion Polls held in March 1999 by the DRP in 15 parliamentary constituencies. In a sense these polls confirmed the results of the July 1998 council by-elections - Lobatse, Francistown, Letlhakane and Medie - which were all swept by the BDP. The BDP won all the council by-elections, including Peleng Central Ward in Lobatse considered to be the stronghold of the BNF. For details see Botswana Daily News (Gaborone), 28 July 1998.
65. For detail see M. Molomo, 'The Implications of the October 1997 Referendum for Botswana', Democratization 5/4 (1998), 163-4. In an unprecedented event, Sir Ketumile Masire, working behind the scenes, brokered an uneasy peace between the Kwelagobe and Merafhe factions in an effort to avert a party split. The Merafhe faction, fearing defeat, had threatened to boycott Central Committee elections because the Kwelagobe faction had reneged on an earlier deal that they would not challenge Mogae (who was then Vice-President) for the chairmanship of the party. Traditionally, the BDP has reserved the chairmanship of the party to the Vice-President to facilitate smooth succession. Clearly flaunting democratic procedures, in a balancing act, delegates at the BDP congress were asked to endorse a compromise Central Committee list presented to them by the party leadership.
66. Mmegi (Gaborone), 20-26 Nov. 1998.
67. In the elections for the Central Committee that were held on 19 July 1999, conducted by the Democracy Research Project of the University of Botswana, the results were as follows: President - unopposed; Chairman - unopposed; Secretary General - unopposed; Treasurer - unopposed; and Deputy Treasurer - unopposed. Only one position among the office bearers, that of Deputy Secretary General, was contested in an election and was won by P. Venson. The five additional positions were won by M. Merafhe, J. Nkate, B. Sebetela, G.U.S. Matlhabaphiri and D.S. Pholo. The outcome of this election reflects a consensus between the two factions.
68. The Botswana Guardian (Gaborone), 9 Oct. 1998.
69. R. Schlemmer et al., Present Realities and Strategies for the Future: Training Workshop for the Botswana Democratic Party (Gaborone, Aug. 1997), 13.
70. The appointment of Ian Khama as Vice-President and Minister of Presidential Affairs and Public Administration was made in this regard.
71. The Botswana Guardian (Gaborone), 3 Nov. 1998.
72. The Gazette (Gaborone), 14 Oct. 1998.
73. The Botswana Gazette (Gaborone), 23 June 1999 and The Midweek Sun (Gaborone), 23 June 1999.
74. The Botswana Gazette (Gaborone), 23 June 1999 and The Midweek Sun (Gaborone), 23 June 1999.
75. Mmegi (Gaborone), 13 Feb. 1998.
76. Mmegi (Gaborone), 24-39 April 1998.
77. Mmegi (Gaborone), 29 May-4 June 1998.
78. Ibid.
79. Ibid.
80. Mmegi (Gaborone), 13 Feb. 1998.
81. Mmegi (Gaborone), 23-29 Jan. 1998.
82. Mmegi (Gaborone), 1-7 May 1998.
83. Mmegi (Gaborone), 30 Jan.-5 Feb. 1998.
84. R. Michels, Political Parties: A Sociological Study of the Oligarchical Tendencies of Modern Democracy (New York: Dover Publications, 1959), 32.
85. The Concerned Group, by and large, represents the old guard of the party that was losing ground within the party as a result of the surge of social democracy as a hegemonic ideological position. This group was defeated and lost control of the Central Committee at the Ledumang Congress in 1997. They alleged that the elections were irregular and threatened a court action against the party. The Central Committee subsequently expelled them from the party. All these struggles culminated in a riotous situation at the Palapye Congress in 1998 between supporters of the Concerned Group and the Central Committee. The end result of all this was the split of the BNF and formation of the BCP.
86. The veterans coalesced into what they called the 'concerned group' and challenged the results of the elections, saying that they were not constitutional.
87. The Botswana Gazette (Gaborone), 24 June 1998.
88. P. Sekatle, 'The Establishment of Lesotho Congress for Democracy: Implications for the 1998 General election', Lesotho Social Science Review 3/2 (1998), 69.
89. Mmegi (Gaborone), 20-26 Nov. 1998.
90. For details, see J.A. du Pisani, M. Broodryk and P.W. Coetzer, 'Protest Marches in South Africa', Journal of Modern African Studies 28/4 (1990), 586.
91. J. Kaunda, 'The Transition to a Multi-Party System and the Consolidation of democracy in Malawi', IL Politico 62/3 (1998), 430.
92. The UDF was sponsored by the Social Democratic Party (SDP), then led by Mareledi Giddie (he has since re-joined the BNF), the Botswana Workers' Front (BWF), led by Shawn Nthaile (a breakaway from the BNF), and the Marxist-Leninist, Engels and Stalinist Movement (MELS), led by Themba Joina.
93. The slogan of the UDF said it all: Tsela Tsheu!. Reply: Ya go tsaya puso! The translation goes something like, the clear path to take over state power.
94. Mmegi (Gaborone), 29 Jan.-4 Feb. 1999.
95. Mmegi (Gaborone), 29 Jan.-4 Feb. 1999.
96. Ibid.
97. Ibid.
98. Ibid.
99. Mmegi (Gaborone), 24-30 July 1998.
100. As per their own proposal, the BPP requested to be given a chance to contest and be supported in the following constituencies: Francistown East, Francistown West, NorthEast, Tonota, Nkange and Sebina Gweta. In addition, they expected to be allocated other constituencies like SouthEast, Lobatse, Kgatleng East, Selibe-Phikwe Serowe North, Gaborone North and Ghanzi. For details, see a paper issued by the National Executive Council, 'Botswana Peoples Party: Towards Patriotic Alliance', a paper presented at the National Unity Preparatory Seminar (Palapye, 23-24 Jan. 1999), 2.
101. Mmegi (Gaborone), 23-29 April 1999.
102. Mmegi (Gaborone), 23-29 April 1999.
103. Botswana Daily News (Gaborone), 24 May 1999.
104. The general elections took place on 16 Oct. 1999. As predicted, the BDP won an overwhelming majority of seats - 33 to the BNF's six and the BCP's one.