Africa-Press – Botswana. A product of the Botswana National Front (BNF) politics since childhood, attorney Joram ‘JJ’ Matome is now gunning for a position at the party’s highest decision-making table. The Mahalapye-born legal hawk, who has previously served on the BNF’s Electoral Board, has set his sights on the position of Deputy Secretary General at the party’s upcoming July Congress, with the hope of working alongside the incumbent Secretary General, Ketlhalefile Motshegwa, who is defending his position.
The soft-spoken but sharp-tongued lawyer, who professes to understand the BNF ideology like the back of his palm, mentions party luminaries such as Dr. Kenneth Koma, as the master who influenced how he views the world from a leftist point of view. This week The staffer, DANIEL CHIDA, sat down with Matomela to dig into his past, his political journey, and his vision for the BNF.
You are known more in courtrooms than in freedom squares, who is JJ?
I was born in 1981 in the iconic village of Mahalapye. I am the second born child to Leah Matomela and Thatedi Keitirile. I was raised in an extended family, where my grandfather John Matomela had a huge influence in my upbringing. I was born into the BNF, I did not join it. My family has always been BNF supporters. Hence, I grew up following the party as I fell in love with its left-oriented politics.
What drove you into politics, especially the BNF?
In 2001, I enrolled for an LLB programme with the University of Botswana. I graduated in 2006. Growing up, and as I stated that Mahalapye is an iconic village, our generation was lucky to be surrounded by great intellectuals and political figures. Koma, although personally I didn’t interact with him, was our role model, and association with their teachings and thoughts influenced some of us to be active in politics and fight the BDP system which we saw as exploitative and oppressive.
Share a few things about Duma Boko’s influence on you?
Boko is one of the people who greatly influenced my decision to become a lawyer. I recall we used to visit the Magistrates Court when he had cases to marvel at his oratory skills and lawyering abilities.
As a UB student what role did you play in BNF politics?
The BNF has been my home. I read the Pamphlet No. 1, the basic document of the BNF, when I was still at primary school. The main message of the manuscript, that the main mission of the BNF is to liberate marginalized groups of our people, especially the poor, resonated with my own thoughts and to this day guides my political bias. Whilst at UB, I was active in student politics and served as the chief mobilizer for Kathleen Letshabo and Nelson Ramaotwana in the 2004 general elections. At the time I was the Mass-BNF Secretary for Legal Affairs. I was also serving as its Public Relations and Communications Head. Later, I was voted into the SRC of UB and served as the Secretary for Publicity.
You are vying for the Deputy Secretary General position, what motivated you?
My decision to stand for the position of Deputy Secretary General was not lightly made, but was motivated by my deep belief that the BNF has to be positioned in a stronger position to effectively have influence in the UDC. A stronger BNF will lead to a stronger UDC. As we already know, the minimum programme of the UDC has all the hallmarks of the Social Democratic Programme of the BNF. In essence, the BNF is the backbone of the UDC and therefore it must have a viable secretariat and structures across the country. This is the main consideration which I believe I can assist the party to achieve. The party processes must be clear and predictable, including internal electoral processes.
What will be your major roles should you be elected?
As DSG, I will be focusing on ensuring that our membership drive is always running and our records can be trusted by our members.
As a lawyer under a party run by a lawyer, do you see this as a good move?
As already stated, Boko as a lawyer influenced some of us to take into the law and become lawyers. It will be a privilege to sit in the Central Committee with him and drive the party forward. As it is becoming clear, his vision for the country, inspired by human rights considerations, has been widely accepted by our people and I believe Botswana will see great development under his leadership.
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