Uganda Media Bill unfair, says Press advocacy body

GABORONE, Tuesday

The latest war in the ruling Botswana Democratic Party (BDP) took a new twist late yesterday when members of the disgruntled Baratapathi faction were given a 48-hour quit notice after an emergency session of the party’s powerful central committee.

The faction announced on Saturday at a meeting attended by six of the 49 BDP MPs that it is forming a new party because it is disgruntled by President Ian Khama’s leadership. But in a strongly worded statement released on Monday evening after marathon emergency central committee meetings that have been going on since Friday, the BDP ordered those in the splinter group to hand in their party membership cards within two days, failure to which they will be treated as BDP members subject to BDP disciplinary action.

Central committee

“The central committee has….resolved that organisers of the new break-away party and the convenors of the so-called Baratapathi meeting, who took part in the unlawful assembly held last Saturday should surrender their membership cards of the BDP within 48 hours to the main party office in Gaborone.

Should this instruction…. be disobeyed, such individuals shall be deemed to remain members of the BDP,” the statement said.

The BDP rejected a list of 30 demands issued by Baratapathi saying that honouring them would be tantamount President Khama totally surrendering his powers.