With only a day left before Botswana hold its general elections, the ruling party and its offshoot are at each other’s throat over claims that the latter is a rebel movement, APA learned here Monday.
As the feud between President Mokgweetsi Masisi and his predecessor Ian Khama boils over, the former has told a reporter for an international media house that the Botswana Patriotic Front (BPF) is capable of being a rebellion movement.
BPF, which is an offshoot of the ruling Botswana Democratic Party (BDP), has Khama as its patron.
Masisi said there are some bandits who want to create the instability that other African countries are known for.
“…and I say this because there is evidence, rudimentary as it might be, particularly the party of the BPF is beginning to form itself into a vigilante and potential rebel movement” said Masisi.
He added that “they buried one of their cadres not so long ago and they had ex-military persons to do the unthinkable thing in our culture.”
“They marched them at a funeral and commandeered them as you would in a rebel army. It’s them who owe an explanation of what they are up to.”
But former BPF leader Biggie Butale shot down Masisi’s claim that his party is a rebellion movement.
He said Masisi made the claims because his party is likely to lose elections.
“Those are utterances of a leader whose party is about to taste how it is like to lose elections since ruling the country in 1966,” said Butale.
KO/jn/APA