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Botswana’s President Mokgweetsi Masisi conceded defeat on Friday after his party which has governed the diamond-rich African country for nearly six decades suffered a resounding defeat in the October 30 general election.
Masisi said he had already spoken to the leader of the left-leaning Umbrella for Democratic Change (UDC), Harvard-educated human rights lawyer Duma Boko, to arrange to hand over the reins of the government. While counting was still underway after Wednesday’s general election, preliminary results showed the UDC was well ahead in the race for seats in the parliament of the arid and sparsely populated nation.
UDC had secured more than 22 parliamentarians which, when added to around a dozen for two other opposition parties, totalled more than 31 of the 61 seats up for grabs, according to tallies based on reporting from counting centres. Although the election authority is not likely to confirm the results until later Friday, initial scores meant Masisi’s Botswana Democratic Party (BDP), which has been in power since independence from Britain in 1966, could not get enough seats to govern.
It was a major blow for the BDP and Masisi, 63, who took power in 2018 and had been confident of securing a second term.”We got it wrong big time in the eyes of the people,” Masisi said. “We were convinced of our message. But every indication, by any measure, is that there’s no way that I can pretend that we’re going to form a government.” “I will respectfully step aside and participate in a smooth and transparent transition process ahead of inauguration,” he said.
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More than one million people were registered to vote, out of a population of 2.6 million, with concerns about unemployment and mismanagement in Masisi’s first term leading to complaints. The self-confident and well-groomed Boko, 54, created the UDC in 2012 to unite opposition groups against the bulwark of the BDP. It is the third time that he has run for president.
The new government will need to focus on weaning the country off its diamond dependency, stabilise the economy and create new jobs, especially for young people.
