Botswana Police Service Public Relations officer Senior Superintendent Dipheko Motube says that they are not considering taking any action against Lobatse Station Commander Loeto Ramabokwa. Ramabokwa was remanded in jail last week after Lobatse Magistrate Cele Motlaleng issued a warrant of arrest against the police chief following a ‘walk out’ on her. Ramabokwa is alleged to have walked away during court questioning on why one of his prosecutors had came to Court not dressed accordingly.
The warrant of arrest is however believed to have been an overreaction by the magistrate who believed that the station commander was being insubordinate. In an interview with Sunday Standard this week, Police spokesperson, Motube said they did not have any documents concerning the crime that Ramabokwa is alleged to have committed which landed him in custody for close to two weeks. “All we know on the crime Ramabokwa is alleged to have committed currently is what we have read in the newspapers so we cannot take action on the basis of what we read in newspapers”, he said.
Asked if that means that Ramabokwa is currently in uniform and conducting his normal duties, Motube responded. “He is”. Ramabokwa got a relief last week Friday when Lobatse High Court judge Godfrey Nthomiwa ordered that he be released on bail on his own recognizance. Furthermore, Nthomiwa ruled that the normal rules relating to time limits and service of documents be dispensed and the matter be heard as a matter of urgency in accordance with Court rules. Ramabokwa was recently transferred to Lobatse and is expected to take legal action against Magistrate Motlaleng for unlawful detention.
