- Youth league says AP wants a clean change of gov’t
GAZETTE REPORTER
Bickering and instability within the Umbrella for Democratic Change (UDC) could cost the opposition coalition the votes necessary to assume power, the Alliance for Progressives Youth League (APYL) has warned.
“It is very important to have a united opposition ahead of the next general elections,” the president of the AP youth league Gaone Majere, said in an interview. “Batswana are suffering in the face of corruption and a high rate of unemployment. We need to rescue Batswana urgently.
Majere emphasized the commitment of the AP to opposition unity but said his party will not join a disjointed opposition.
“We believe that we need sober heads and selflessness to go forward so that the only thing that guides us is that which is in the best interests of Batswana,” he added, saying it is incumbent upon UDC leaders to discard their self-serving mentality. “Opposition leaders must forget about looking out for themselves and focus on what voters want.”
He described the AP as a party that wants a clean change of government and they are willing to explore every means to achieve opposition cooperation in whatever form that is practicable. However, a total merger is far-fetched at this stage because a united opposition is a prerequisite of such a goal, Majere asserted.
“Total merger is not possible,” he said. “The advice that we offer is for the UDC to do what Batswana want, which is trying iron out our differences and to stop advancing our parochial interests as parties and individuals. No one can be comfortable to be inside a dirty house, so we are helping them clean up.”
A big-brother mentality between the BCP and the BNF has been identified as a major spoke in the wheel of opposition unity. Fighting over allocation of constituencies by the contracting partners is another internecine factor.
Political analyst Leonard Sesa has also said divisions within the project are likely to cost the UDC dearly, stressing that it is in the interest of the contracting partners to find common ground to resolve their differences.