Gaolathe dumps UDC
*Announces new party- Alliance for Progressives
*'We will wear purple'
Finally Ndaba Gaolathe-led BMD faction has announced that it has formed a new political party - Alliance for Progressives (AP).
The announcement was made Wednesday night by Gaolathe at Ave Maria Pastoral Centre in Gaborone. Gaolathe told the multitudes that filled two halls of the centre that they decided to form a new party because the verdict by Umbrella for Democratic Change (UDC) on Tuesday was not what they expected. He explained that AP will use purple as its colours and the party will be launched next month (October). Gaolathe said they stand on the side of justice and believe a congress re-run could have been the best solution for the BMD crisis.
He said they come a long way and have suffered at the hands of those who claim legitimacy of the BMD leadership. Most of the people that attended were adorned in purple regalia when Gaolathe broke the news.
The move by Gaolathe`s faction now nullifies the UDC verdict that called for power sharing. It means Advocate Sidney Pilane-led faction is now the BMD National Executive Committee. Pilane led faction on Wednesday wrote to Gaolathe faction requesting that they forward their power sharing proposals by next week Monday morning. Gaolathe led faction Secretary General has dismissed the letter as a joke.
UDC President Duma Boko has indicated that when the new party is formed the UDC would act based on its own interests. The announcement of the new party was graced by some of BOFEPUSU leadership, conveners of UDC, BPP Vice President Lenyatso and some of Gaborone elites.
It remains to be seen if the new party will apply to join the UDC as Gaolathe’s team has made it publicly clear on numerous occasions that it is not ready to work with `thugs` referring to Advocate Pilane`s faction. If the UDC agrees to AP joining them new negotiations will have to be undertaken where re-allocation of constituencies will be made, a process that has proved problematic for the opposition.