09 Jul 2017

President Lt Gen. Dr Seretse Khama Ian Khama has implored democrats to stay disciplined to ensure that the Botswana Democratic Party (BDP) does not lose course.

Giving a keynote address at the BDP elective congress in Tonota on Friday, President Khama said every member should understand their role and adhere to it.

“This calls every stalwart of this party to take full responsibility and ensure that our constitution is the supreme document of being,” he said.

President Khama said if BDP members were to ensure that Batswana lived in dignity, they must be disciplined and aligned to the national interest.

He said the guiding compass of his presidency was the five Ds, and service to his party and country. He said he was convinced that the objectives were as relevant as ever, and that he wished the five Ds could remain a reference point in the party’s national building endeavours.

President Khama said the new generation of voters demanded political accountability on all issues, adding that it was for that reason that they must define their role more clearly on the policy front.

He said the BDP had maintained a favourable impression because “their finger has always been on the finger of the pulse of the public need.”

“To win 11 consecutive elections in an open multi-party contest is no small feat in the history of electoral politics, and this confidence we enjoy from the voters must never be taken for granted,” he said.

He said democrats should never be found wanting in articulating their policies as a party, adding that democrats should never falter because it would create an opening for a clueless opposition.

He said democrats should not be complacent on the basis that opposition parties were incompetent, unpatriotic and power hungry.

“The inherent instability that characterises all opposition parties in this country points to their track record of lack of harmony, knowledge and ability within their ranks,” he said.

He said since opposition parties were vulnerable to internal dissension, “one could only imagine the kind of chaos the nation would experience should they find themselves in government.

“Batswana with their BDP led government have invested too much in building the kind of country we have today and we cannot afford an opposition government that will inflict damage on all and sundry due to a blind preoccupation with positions, personal interest and deceit,” said President Khama.

He also accused opposition parties of baseless threats to prosecute everyone ever associated with the BDP government and failing to provide a single idea of how they could resolve the challenges which the BDP was able to address.

“Their attempts with some of their allies in the media to discredit us through false and baseless allegations which are revived time and time again remind me of a child crying over losing in a game over and over again frustrated that it knows it can never win against a bigger and better opponent,” he said.

He said opposition members were unpatriotic citizens who went out of their way to disparage their country and even produce alternative facts to deny BDP achievements. He added that the achievements of the BDP were not self-praise, but had been corroborated by various international bodies.

He noted that the country was ranked number one in the world for tourism, amongst the least corrupt countries, as one of 10 countries free from conflicts in the world, and that it was recognised by the African Union for promoting gender issues.

President Khama said the government would continue to confront challenges with reference to the past because that was where inspiration and experience was drawn

He saluted his predecessors who made a mark in their own ways since independence.

He urged new central committee members to assist the party to navigate towards the 2018 primary elections and the 2019 general elections, adding that the ultimate responsibility rested on the committee to respond to the challenges ahead.

“As President I have a responsibility to ensure that our party is orderly, united and in good shape and to achieve this I need your support which can only be demonstrated by the ability of each delegate to rise above divisions motivated by short-term gain,” he said.

In his welcome remarks, BDP chairperson, Mr Mokgweetsi Masisi noted that every two years the party congress elected the central committee according to the party constitution.

He said while democrats would vote for different candidates for central committee positions, they should have the interest of the party at heart.

Mr Masisi, who is also the Vice President, noted that the congress was the last to be addressed by President Khama as the head of the country, and that they should honour him by remaining united even after the central committee elections.

Still at the congress, messages from ruling parties in neighbouring countries including South West Africa People’s Organisation (SWAPO) of Namibia, Mozambique Liberation Front (FRELIMO), Zimbabwe African Union (ZANU), People’s Movement for Liberation of Angola (MPLA), African National Congress (ANC) of South Africa and Patriotic Front (PF) of Zambia were read.

The congress was held under the theme: Our structures, our strength-another 50 years in government #goyagoileng. ENDS