- Masisi persuades Dada for last BDP term?
- “Democrats wanted me to continue”- DADA
LETLHOGILE MPUANG
President Mokgweetsi Masisi has managed to convince business mogul Satar Dada to seek re-election as the treasurer of the Botswana Democratic Party (BDP) for at least one more term.
Dada has confirmed that he was preparing to stand down as BDP treasurer until he was persuaded by “democrats” to seek another term in the BDP Central Committee (CC). Dada appears in the party chairman, Slumber Tsogwane’s lobby list for the BDP elective congress set for August. The list features Kavis Kario for secretary general, Lemogang Kwape as deputy SG, and Jagdish Shah as deputy treasurer. Sources within the BDP have allege that President Masisi was one of the people who convinced Dada to contest.
“The list is true,” Dada confirmed in an interview on Tuesday. “I had said that I would be stepping down as party treasurer in the last congress, but the Democrats wanted me to continue. They said they wanted someone with experience, and I decided to listen to them,” he said.
Speculation is rife that this is likely to be the last time Dada contests for the treasury seat. Some within the party believe that Shah could be the next in line to take over.
Furthermore, it is alleged that Tsogwane’s lobby list has the backing of President Masisi, but he is unlikely to make his choice public. Masisi was the one who nominated Tsogwane to take over the BDP chairmanship after he ascended to the Presidency in April 2018.
Tsogwane will face off against former cabinet minister Nonofo Molefhi for the party chairmanship.
Although Molefhi is yet to reveal his lobby list, names such as Shaw Kgathi and Thapelo Matsheka have been linked to his faction. Kgathi has already come out to announce his intention to contest for the SG seat. Molefhi was unavailable for comment at the time of going to press. In 2017, Masisi defeated Molefhi for the party chairmanship in Tonota.