Gaborone High Court Judge Terrence Rannowane will on 25th May deliver the judgement in a case in which Bothakga Burrows Botswana is challenging Department of Roads’ decision to terminate their consultancy services in the multimillion Charles Hill Ncojane road tender.
State counsel Olayemi Aganga from the Attorney General said the application by Bothakga Burrow Botswana should be dismissed because there was nothing that warranted that it should heard on urgency.
Aganga argued that that the State would be prejudiced if the application was treated as urgent. He pointed out that the road facilitates the transportation of cattle to Lobatse BMC and is a major link in a geographic area that is difficult to transverse. He further revealed that relations between Botlhakga Burrow Botswana and the contractor, Zac Construction had become acrimonious to an extent that the Ministry of Transport and Communication had chosen to terminate Bothakga Burrow in service of public interest.
Aganga said delays in the work would result in substantial cost overruns which would be borne by tax payers.
He further argued that any prejudice suffered by Bothakga Burrow could be mitigated by way of payment of damages. He further submitted that Bothakga Burrow can take the matter for arbitration if the application was dismissed by the High Court.
He said Bothakga Burrows had failed to exhaust all available local remedies before approaching the High Court adding that they could have gone for arbitration.
Aganga said the application was not correctly before the Court as court rules were not properly followed. This he said was abuse of court process.
Bothakga Burrow’s lawyer argued among other things that it would be costly to relocate their employees most of whom are family breadwinners.
