The Botswana Defence Force (BDF) is investigating a case in which two male officers fought over a female officer and ended up damaging public property at Glen Valley Barracks.
The two officers, a Major and a Lieutenant based at Glen Valley barracks, are at the centre of Military Police (MP) investigations to ascertain what could have caused the violent fight over a female officer which resulted in damage of government property.
Information reaching The Telegraph indicates that members of the Military Police officers were called to intervene as the fight escalated beyond control. The junior officer (Lieutenant) allegedly attacked his superior (the Major) after accusing him of having a romantic relationship with his girlfriend, a female Second Lieutenant. Things took a turn for the worst when the two returned to Glen Valley barracks from the National Stadium after participating in BDF day celebrations.
An eye witness who opted not to be named for fear of victimization said the fight was so severe that Military Police were called to intervene after attempts by other BDF officers to break the two apart proved futile.
The recent brawl has sparked fears that incidents of such nature will likely escalate upon the arrival of more female private officers, who will complete training sometime this year. Junior officers told this publication that violence among soldiers will escalate if senior officers do not desist from using their superior ranks to lure their girlfriends with promises of fast tracked promotions. Responding to the questions from The Telegraph, BDF spokesperson Colonel Tebo Dikole said: “It’s true that there are allegations that some male officers resulted in a physical contact and the allegations are still under investigations.”
He said although the investigations are still on-going BDF has learnt that some window panes and household properties were damaged during the fight stating that cases of members engaging in-physical fighting are not rampant as suggested by other people.
“As a disciplined force, we always encourage our members to resolve their differences through other means rather than violence”.
He added that fighting by members of the force constitutes a disciplinary offense and for that reason such acts are completely not condoned.
However Colonel Dikole denied reports that suggest that since the inception of female officers in the army in-fights among male officers are rampant.
“We have never had incidents of infighting related to female officers in BDF in the past”.
