Former Botswana President Mokgweetsi Masisi has claimed that Batswana will not receive what they expected from the Umbrella for Democratic Change (UDC), despite the opposition’s decisive victory in the recent elections.
Masisi, whose Botswana Democratic Party (BDP) has been in power since independence in 1966, faced a crushing defeat at the ballot box, with the UDC securing 36 parliamentary seats compared to just 4 for the BDP.
In his remarks, Masisi suggested that the BDP’s loss was partly due to the UDC’s lofty promises, which he argued may have led voters to expect more than what could realistically be delivered.
He hinted that the “rich promises” made by the UDC during the campaign were a key factor in their electoral success, but warned that fulfilling these promises might prove difficult. Said Masisi (via Mmegi):
If you put our manifesto against those of the two main opposition parties, the UDC and the Botswana Congress Party (BCP), they had something in common. They promised people lots of monies.
Imagine when you have been unemployed and being told the economy is not performing well and you get such promises. Even on election day, you could see there was a lot of happiness.
A lot of new merchandise was also flaunted and people were convinced that there was hope and they voted for them.
Masisi said he could not deny that the BDP’s campaign was not as captivating as that of the opposition parties.
He admitted that, as the ruling party, they could only make promises based on what they believed the economy could realistically support. Said Masisi:
We condemn these promises as we continue to doubt that they will deliver these promises. It is impossible because it would cause problems.
Prices would skyrocket, it will cause the economy to collapse and it will make dealing with other countries and financiers to doubt us.
This is because our main source of money is diamonds and they are not being bought. Also their prices rise and fall from time to time and unfortunately for us, the prices fell during the elections cycle and we could not control it.
Masisi said he was proud that many BDP members still voted for the party, securing the second-highest number of votes nationwide.
He said if it was not for the First Past The Post system, they would be having more legislators. Masisi said:
But I am not complaining about the system because we are a national party. We were all over the country hence we believe that we can still regroup and regain power in 2029.
Masisi said he would not stand for another term but would step down as BDP president next year when his mandate from the BDP comes to an end. He said:
I never thought about quitting hastily because as a leader of such a huge organisation and you quit after losing elections, it would be irresponsible of me. You should stay and talk to the people until all has settled and a suitable leader is selected.
It would also look like I was a coward, but I am not one and I am going to meet with the BDP members including those who have been writing accusing me on social media.
