Division in Botswana opposition leads to new party

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Division in Botswana opposition leads to new party

9:52 CAT | 30 Oct 2017

The once a united force, Botswana opposition is now fragmented, resulting in the formation of a new party.

This is considered a serious knock in the oppositions’ chances of ever ruling the landlocked country of just over 2 million people.
In 2014 a coalition of opposition parties, called the Umbrella for Democratic Change won 20 seats out of the 57 parliament seats.

The margin marked the highest number of seats the opposition has ever won in Botswana.

In 2014, the late Gomolemo Motsoaledi defected from the ruling Botswana Democratic Party, he formed the Botswana Movement for Democracy (BMD), which is part of the Umbrella for Democratic Change.

But those aspirations for vibrant and united opposition politics seem to be dying a slow death. Factions, in the BMD, resulted in the formation of a new organisation, the Alliance for Progressives. Ndaba Gaolathe, who was Motsoaledi’s second in command, is the new leader.