Thursday, November 7, 2024

DCEC investigations should get more thorough

The Directorate on Corruption and Economic Crime has been doing a sterling job of fighting corruption in Botswana.

Their efforts have helped Botswana to consistently earn the accolade of being the least corrupt country in Africa, which will no doubt attract investors to our shores.

Being a least corrupt country does not in any way mean there is no corruption in Botswana.

As many Batswana would attest, corruption is a daily occurrence.
It is bound to increase.

The growth in the number of foreign nationals as well and the growth in the size of Botswana’s economy have, as a matter of fact, increased the probabilities for the incidence of corruption.

We are likely to see not only the increase in the regularity of corruption cases, but also the sophistication of the same.

It is, therefore, imperative that we improve our legislative machinery to fight corruption. We have to uphold the law, and fully implement existing laws to achieve the desired results.

We also need to intensify public education efforts which aim to teach society about the dangers of corruption.

Otherwise we will lose the fight.

As a country, we must plan thoroughly and fight corruption resiliently.

There is need for direct involvement of political leadership for without political will we will not go far.

Otherwise the DCEC will become a toothless watchdog. The DCEC must reinvent itself and improve its operations. There is a perception among Batswana that the DCEC is only interested in the small man.

Every week, we receive reports from the DCEC in which they regale us with stories of how people were convicted and sentenced to jail terms because of corrupt practices. That is all well and good.

But the DCEC’s record in the investigation and conviction of the big fish has not been as impressive.

We suspect the reason is because the rich and powerful use technical tools that go well beyond DCEC’s deciphering capabilities.

We appreciate that the big fish should not be targeted just because they are rich. We also agree that corruption is corruption, regardless of the amount of money involved.

What is important though is for DCEC to enhance its technical skills, be they forensic, accounting, legal, auditing or investigation.

Without those, DCEC will simply drown as the sophisticated criminals are forever opening new frontiers.

The DCEC must therefore demonstrate their commitment to fighting corruption at all levels.

One disturbing development that we have lately grown to see with regard to corruption investigation is that the few who are ultimately charged always walk free ÔÇô most of the time on technicalities.

There is no point in rushing through investigations only for people to walk away scot free after easily disposing of their cases. It is also true that in Botswana the big fish get charged, are sentenced at the lower courts but eventually win their cases on appeal.

The Directorate of Public Prosecutions also stands accused on this matter. DPP officers put the blame on DCEC investigators, saying they do a shoddy job during investigations.
We do not entirely agree.

The DPP is the one vested with the power to prosecute.

It is our view that DPP should not rush to charge people when they do not have sufficient evidence to warrant a conviction. DPP should challenge the DCEC investigators. They should never accept half baked investigations that will never make it to trial.

Rushing to lay unfounded charges on innocent people should never be condoned. This puts the credibility of the DPP at stake. It also tarnishes innocent people’s reputations, destroys families as well as careers.

Even worse, the DPP stands at risk of wasting millions of tax payers’ money settling lawsuits out of court after being sued for malicious prosecution. While we acknowledge the challenges faced by the DCEC and other criminal justice organs, we call for diligence in investigations and prosecutions.

Government should move to train investigators and improve legislation to ensure that operations at DPP and DCEC are harnessed. Both departments must speed up investigations and prosecutions to avoid sluggish disposal of cases.

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