Motsamai’s legacy divides opinions
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Botswana Public Employees Union (BOPEU)’s outgoing President; Andrew Motsamai’s role in trade unionism has divided opinions from detractors and admirers alike. Motsamai will leave the BOPEU presidency to head the commercial wing of the union in March this year.
Moeti Mohwasa, Secretary General of Botswana National Front (BNF) remarked that although Motsamai and BNF had a few differences, both believed in the uplifting of workers.“That is one thing that we shared. He did not believe that trade unions should endorse political parties.
But we strongly believed that trade unions should endorse political movements which share the same vision as theirs,” he and added that, “As the Secretary General of BOFEPUSU he was able to lead workers during the 2011 public servants strike in which the workers were able to exercise their right of withdrawing their labour. We believe the right to strike is a fundamental tool for workers to use to bargain for better working conditions and Motsamai helped the workers in doing that.”
Mohwasa added that Motsamai was part of the Botswana Federation of Public Private and Parastatal Sector Unions (BOFEPPPUSU then BOFEPUSU) team which helped found the Umbrella for Democratic Change (UDC) together with Johnson Motshwarakgole after the collapse of the initial talks.
“We met as BNF at Oasis Motel where he shared with us the need for opposition parties to work together which ultimately led to the formation of UDC though without Botswana Congress Party (BCP). Other than the little differences we had, we shared a common goal on the issues of the plight of workers.”
However, the ruling Botswana Democratic Party’s (BDP) Secretary General, Botsalo Ntuane who described the relationship between his party and outgoing BOPEU president as cordial, has praised Motsamai’s decision to lead BOPEU out of the BOFEPPPUSU federation, as he noted that it was a wise decision.
“We worked well and enjoyed cordial relations with Comrade Motsamai and we hope to maintain the same with his successor and BOPEU at large. Most importantly, we admire him for being part of the BOPEU collective decision to withdraw the union from partisan politics. Our position as the BDP is that unions should not align with political parties because that only serves to divide the membership and subordinates the welfare and interests of workers to partisan agendas,” he said
Ntuane further contended that BOPEU’s withdrawal “was a courageous decision in a union environment characterised by intimidation and intolerance of diverse views. No less important and in testimony to the visionary he is, Comrade Motsamai and his team invested BOPEU time and resources from self serving partisan politics to creating a viable commercial arm meant to improve the livelihood of members. We wish him well and even better success in his new endeavours. Indeed for those with eyes and can see, Comrade Motsamai is possibly a man for the future.”
Meanwhile Umbrella for Democratic Change (UDC) parliamentary caucus spokesperson and Gaborone Central legislator, Dr Phenyo Butale, expressed disappointment at Motsamai’s decision to pull BOPEU out of BOFEPPPUSU, saying that it defeated the purpose of a strong and united labour movement.
“We have always engaged all players and we believe workers are an important part of our democracy. We have at times solicited ideas from him on issues of labour but one cannot overlook the fact that they were divisions in the labour movements at the time he was at the helm,” he stated.
Butale’s added that, “We believe this happened at a time when workers needed to be more united than ever. You will recall the 3 percent salary increment in which the other segment of the workers accepted while others fought for something better. We had fundamental differences because we believed nobody should be a spectator and there is a need for trade unions to be involved in the political game but he believed otherwise. Our relationship with him was cordial but had its own challenges because of the divisions in the labour movements.”
Motsamai, who came to power in 2007 was part of the transformation that ushered in the new BOPEU. BOPEU started as staff association as far back as 1942, and then known as Bechuanaland Protectorate Junior Civil Service Association. It later in the 1960s merged with Bechuanaland Protectorate European Senior Civil Service Association to establish Bechuanaland Civil Service Association (BCSA), which after independence, transformed into the Botswana Civil Service Association.
The association went through another transformation process in the 1990s’ when it was now called Botswana Civil Servants Association. In 2007, the association attained Trade Union status, thus giving birth to BOPEU.
BOPEU LEADERSHIP
When Motsamai ascended to the presidency of the newly formed union in 2007, BOPEU had barely 15 000 members, but almost a decade later, the membership stands at more than 32 000, more than 100 percent growth. Perhaps the most significant and also controversial is the transformation of BOPEU’s commercial wing which has paid dividends. BOPEU’s assets base grew from P10 million in 2008 to P120 million currently, an achievement Motsamai has stated he is proud of.BOPEU has however come under fire often times for its commercialisation route, as many view it as trailing outside of trade unionism whose core mandate is to advocate for workers’ rights and welfare.
SECRETARY GENERAL OF BOFEPPPUSU
Motsamai was the secretary general of BOFEPUSU (now BOFEPPPUSU) when the federation resolved to go on the infamous ‘mother of all strikes’ in 2011. The aftermath of the strike was a broken relationship between government and the unions, expulsion of over 700 public servants and the birth of Umbrella for Democratic Change (UDC).
FORMATION OF UDC
Motsamai is often credited with having played a role in the formation of opposition coalition, UDC, which comprised of; Botswana National Front (BNF), Botswana Movement for Democracy (BMD) and Botswana Peoples Party (BPP). During the 2011 public servants strike, BOFEPUSU leadership had promised to rally behind opposition, provided they contested as one entity.
The 100 000 membership of BOFEPPUSU made a compelling case. However the talks soon collapsed. Motsamai was instrumental in resuscitating the talks, meeting the leadership of both political parties in order to convince them to reverse their earlier decision. All opposition parties save for Botswana Congress Party (BCP), which was part of the initial talks agreed to return to the negotiation table. The end result was the formation of the UDC.
BOPEU WITHDRAWAL FROM BOFEPPPUSU
The relationship between BOPEU and other BOFEPPPUSU affiliates hit an all time low when the former refused to be part of the resolution that endorsed UDC ahead of the 2014 general elections. BOPEU reasoned that it did not have a mandate to do so while other affiliates opined that having helped found UDC, they had moral obligation to support it. The fall-out set in motion a chain of events which led to the departure of BOPEU from BOFEPPPUSU. The resolution was reached by a majority at the 2015 BOPEU congress. Since then BOPEU and BOFEPPPUSU have been at loggerheads, the latest being a contention over who was eligible to be part of the bargaining council between the two unions.
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Local tennis team upbeat ahead of Billie Jean King cup
With almost two weeks until the 2023 Billie Jean King Cup, which will be staged in Kenya from June 12-17, 2023, the Botswana Tennis Association (BTA) ladies’ team coach, Ernest Seleke, is optimistic about reaching greater heights.
Billie Jean King Cup, or the BJK Cup, is a premier international team competition in women’s tennis, launched as the Federation Cup to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the International Tennis Federation (ITF). The BJK Cup is the world’s largest annual women’s international team sports competition in terms of the number of nations that compete.
The finals will feature 12 teams (Botswana, Burundi, Ghana, Kenya, Seychelles, Morocco, Namibia, Nigeria, Tunisia, Mauritius, Zimbabwe, and the Democratic Republic of Congo) competing in the four round-robin groups of three. The four group winners will qualify for the semifinals, and the 2023 Billie Jean King Cup will be crowned after the completion of the knockout phase.
Closer to home, the BW Tennis team is comprised of Thato Madikwe, Leungo Monnayoo, Chelsea Chakanyuka, and Kelebogile Monnayoo. However, according to Seleke, they have not assembled the team yet as some of the players are still engaged.
“At the moment, we are depending on the players and their respective coaches in terms of training. However, I will meet up with Botswana-based players in the coming week, while the United States of America (USA) based player Madikwe will probably meet us in Kenya. Furthermore, Ekua Youri and Naledi Raguin, who are based in Spain and France respectively, will not be joining us as they will be writing their examinations,” said Seleke.
Seleke further highlighted the significance of this competition and how competitive it is. “It is a massive platform for our players to showcase their talent in tennis, and it is very competitive as countries target to get promoted to the world categories where they get to face big nations such as Spain, France, USA, and Italy. Though we are going to this tournament as underdogs because it is our second time participating, I’m confident that the girls will put in a good showing and emerge with results despite the odds,” highlighted Seleke.
Quizzed about their debut performance at the BJK Cup, he said, “I think our performance was fair considering the fact that we were newbies. We came third in our group after losing to North Macedonia and South Africa. We went on to beat Uganda, then Kenya in the playoffs. Unfortunately, we couldn’t play Burundi due to heavy rainfall and settled for the position 9/10,” he said.
For her part, team representative Leungo Monnayoo said they are working hard as they aim to do well at the tourney. “The preparations for the tourney have long begun because we practice each and every day. We want to do well, hence we need to be motivated. Furthermore, I believe in my team as we have set ourselves a big target of coming home with the trophy,” she said.
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Pep Stores donates sanitary towels to Popagano JSS
The Guidance and Counseling unit at Popagano Junior Secondary School received a donation of 790 sanitary towels from Pep stores on Thursday.
When presenting the donation, Mareledi Thebeng, the Dinokaneng Area Manager, highlighted their belief in giving back to the community, as their existence depends on the communities they serve. Thebeng pointed out that research indicates one in four girls miss school every day due to the lack of basic necessities like sanitary towels. Therefore, as a company, they strive to assist in alleviating this situation. She expressed hope that this donation would help ensure uninterrupted learning for girls.
Upon receiving the donation on behalf of the students, Charity Sambire, the President of the Student Representative Council, expressed her gratitude. Sambire specifically thanked Pep Store for their generous gift, speaking on behalf of the students, especially the girl child.
She conveyed their sincere appreciation for Pep Store’s compassion and quoted the adage, “Blessed is the hand that gives.” Sambire expressed the students’ hope for Pep Stores’ prosperity, enabling them to continue supporting the students. As a gesture of gratitude, the students pledged to excel academically.
During her speech, Motlalepula Madome, the Senior Teacher in Guidance and Counseling, highlighted that many students at the school come from disadvantaged backgrounds where parents struggle to provide basic necessities. Consequently, some students miss school when they experience menstruation due to this lack.
Madome emphasized the significance of the donation in preventing the girl child from missing lessons and its potential to improve the school’s overall results. She expressed the school’s gratitude and expressed a desire for continued support from Pep Stores.
Popagano Junior Secondary School, situated in the Okavango District, holds the second position academically in the North West region. Despite its location, the school has been dedicated to achieving excellence since 2017
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Botswana misses out critical PAP committee meeting
The Pan African Parliament (PAP) committee on gender, family, youth and people with disability in its sitting considered, adopted and recommended to the plenary session the preliminary report on the framework for the model law on gender equality.
According to the last week’s media release from PAP which is sitting with its various committees until June 2nd, the committee is following up the PAP initiative to draw up a model law on gender equality to enable national governments to harmonize, modernize and standardize their legislations to address local needs is set to be discussed in Plenary.
However, what is concerning is the fact that Botswana which is a member state missed the deliberations. Kgosi Mosadi Seboko who sat in the committee representing Botswana has since been ejected by parliament and this is a huge blow for a nation that is still battling equity and gender balance.
“Although PAP has no legislative powers it makes model laws for member states to adopt. PAP also develops protocols to be ratified by countries. The input of countries at Committee state is extremely critical. It now means the voice of Botswana is missing the discussions leading up to development of protocols or model laws,” said one of Botswana’s representative at PAP Dr. Kesitegile Gobotswang who is attending the current session.
While Botswana is missing, the committee meeting took place on the sidelines of the Sixth PAP second ordinary Session being held under the African Union Theme of the Year for 2023, “The Year of AfCFTA: Accelerating the Implementation of the African Continental Free Trade Area” in Midrand, South Africa and will run up to 2 June 2023. Chairperson of the Committee, Hon Mariam Dao-Gabala expressed satisfaction with preliminary processes undertaken so far towards the formulation of the Model Law,” a release from the PAP website reads.
“The law should be suitable to all countries whatever the predominant culture or religion is. The aim is to give an opportunity to women to participate in the economic, political and social development of the continent. Women are not well positioned and face a lot of obstacles. We are introducing the idea of equity in the Law because we cannot talk about equality without equity,” said Hon Mariam Dao-Gabala in the press statement.
The release has stated that among issues to be covered by the Model Law is the migratory movements of women. The Committee proffered that this has to be addressed at the continental level to ensure that migrant women enjoy all their rights and live with dignity in their destination country. The members of the Gender Committee undertook consultations to consolidate the contributions of the various stakeholders that will be the logical framework format for the Model Law.