13 Nov 2024

Perseverance they say, pays. Most people would not mind being determined until they get what they want.

However, others could go to the extent where if feels a little extreme, yet still keep going.

Hotel 430! Newly elected legislators are being oriented. A bespectacled Mr Shima Monageng walks to a tea table as BOPA team approaches him, and he gives a wry smile when he learns the gist of the interview.

“This was my fifth time trying, and at last I got it,” he said.

Mr Monageng, now the Molepolole South legislator has been consistently standing for parliamentary seat since 2004, each time losing yet kept trying.

He indicated that what kept him going was the realisation that the challenges Bakwena faced were not answered.

“If I realised at some point that the challenges they faced were answered, maybe I would have just sat back because it would have indicated that the area had an able leader, but until then I knew I had to keep pushing and that is one thing that inspired me the most,” he said.

Mr Monageng also said politics was all about desires from deep down one’s heart, and that until such desires were answered, it will haunt one until they fulfilled them.

Having worked with and for Bakwena in many capacities through the Kweneng Rural Development Association, Mr Monageng said that they must have realised his potential and qualities.

“I have a good legacy among Bakwena, one of them being spearheading the establishment of Mafenyatlala Mall as well as two filling stations, so both I and Bakwena felt that the chapter would not be closed until I represented them at parliament to advocate for their betterment,” he said.

Mr Monageng, said ever since he first tried his hand for a legislative seat in the 2004, he has never had any doubt that one day he will make it to parliament.

Politics is by nature an expensive game, and Mr Monageng admitted that it drained him financially to the extent that his family felt that he should just quit his attempt at parliament.

“Actually, my family was against me standing for this election as they felt that enough was enough, but I had to plead and convince them to allow me one last chance,” he said, and admitted that should he have lost, it would have been his last indeed.

And now that he found his Holy Grail, would he seek re-election in 2029?

“If it was just by me, I would tell you that I will not seek re-election. I do not want to overstay, but these are my wishes and they may be outweighed by those of my constituents,” he said.

Mr Monageng also said all these years that he was trying for a parliamentary seat, he also desired for a regime change as he felt that the country had been under one government for too long.

He said these elections therefore gave him a double dose of blessings as he managed to win an elusive parliamentary seat, and that there was a regime change.

In his parting shot, Mr Monageng said now that regime change has been achieved, his biggest prayer is that the UDC finds wisdom to fulfill the desires of Batswana and not disappoint them.

“All these years Batswana have been reluctant on regime change all because of just a fear for the unknown, and now that they found the strength to change, it is upon us as the UDC to instill trust in them that the act was not suicidal,” he said.

The Boteti West legislator Mr Sam Digwa was also a perennial loser whose perseverance was only rewarded this year. He first tried his hand in the 2009 general elections where he received the wrath of former vice president, Mr Slumber Tsogwane for the first time.

“In 2009 when I first stood there wasn’t that much expectation, but to just introduce myself to the electorate and let them know I am available. I was also under-resourced and still had my young children to raise, and that was also coupled with the fact that the area was a BDP stronghold. So, the plan was to go it slow, to teach people about why me and not the others,” he said.

Mr Digwa said he only started availing himself with intent in the next elections in 2014.

Despite getting a whipping each election, Mr Digwa said he was partly motivated by the fact that each time, he managed to lean the gap between him and the winner. However, most of all, he indicated that his primary motivating factor was poverty in his area.

“My constituency has a challenge of human-wildlife conflict, which became more apparent to me while doing my academic research there. As a result of this conflict, people cannot grow crops, which exacerbates the poverty levels. These are the challenges that kept nudging me” he said.

He said that one way he endeared himself to the electorate was challenging the leadership at any opportunity he had, such as kgotla meetings.

His longevity he said, was inspired by the likes of the late former South African president, Mr Nelson Mandela whom he said managed regime change despite all odds.

Mr Digwa said that now that he finally made it, he hopes to advocate for developments for his area, which he said is lacking and has been overtaken by areas that used to be much smaller.

“I have to show my electorates that they made the right choice by bringing me to Parliament, I am the solution to their problem as long as they work with me. We are also lucky that we have intelligent leadership in President Advocate Duma Boko and Vice President, Mr Ndaba Gaolathe. We trust their brains to help resuscitate the economy,” he concluded.

Parliament will be starting in a few weeks, and Messrs Monageng and Digwa can’t wait to hit the ground running. ENDS