Ibo Kenosi drops a bombshell

The Secretary General of Botswana Teachers Union (BTU), Ibo Kenosi dropped a bombshell at the Botswana Public Employees Union (BOPEU) congress in Palapye saying the Botswana Federation of Public Sector Unions (BOFEPUSU) has failed the union.

He told members of BOPEU that as BTU they did not need an invitation from BOPEU. “As BTU when you were on strike we travelled acrossthe country supporting you as the union. This is what is called friendship. We did not have to wait for your invitation.

When I was preparing to come to the congress I received an invitation from the federation leadership about the Bargaining Council and I chose to come here,” he said. While other sister unions came to offer solidarity messages to BOPEU, no one from the federation’s leadership showed up.

It is said that they convened a meeting about the bargaining council in Gaborone on Tuesday. “As a federation we have failed BOPEU. In the federation election this year we slept a day before knowing that Sikalame Seitiso will be the president but changed at the last minute. We want to set the record straight about these issues,” Kenosi said. The signs have long been evident about the sour relationship between the two parties. Last year, BOPEU pulled out of the May Day celebrations, over the ‘regime change’ theme that was chosen by the federation.

In the build up to the 2014 General Election, BOFEPUSU administrative secretary Samuel Molaodi allegedly endorsed Umbrella for Democratic Change (UDC) during the launch of Gabane/Mmankgodi parliamentary candidate General Pius Mokgware. This annoyed BOPEU whose Vice President Masego Mogwera was BOFEPUSU President. He then issued a statement distancing BOFEPUSU from Molaodi’s utterances.

There are allegations that the federation has been supporting Seitiso to topple his leader, Andrew Motsamai. Even though he was not directly speaking about Seitiso, Kenosi said a leader who was decampaigning those he was working with needs to be evaluated by members of the union.