Ntuane: I’m not a factionalist

Calls on paper to retract story linking him with New Jerusalem faction, threatens litigation      

Veteran Botswana Democratic Party (BDP) politician Botsalo Ntuane has taken exception to media reports linking him with a faction of the party – New Jerusalem – that aims to oust President Mokgweetsi Masisi from party leadership.

He has written a letter of demand, calling for immediate withdrawal of the statement carried in a local newspaper. Through his lawyers B. Maripe and Company – Ntuane declares: “We are instructed that this is not only false, but malicious, damaging, disparaging, and defamatory of client in that, among other things: It portrays him as a factionalist and therefore divisive; it suggests he is bent on destabilising the BDP as a party, and the Government of the country under the leadership of Dr E. K. Masisi; It brings out the implication that client is acting against interests of the party in that he promotes and encourages disunity and disorder within the party”.

Ntuane’s lawyers declare further: “Client feels very strongly about this as he has established a reputation as a non-factionalist, discourages factionalism and lobbying for office on factional platforms. This is evidenced by his stance at the party’s Tonota Congress in July 2017, where he competed for the position of Secretary General, as an independent candidate. His position of non-alignment is known to all in the so-called factional groupings”.