Tuesday, November 12, 2024

DCEC PROBES SKI, TSHEKEDI, ANTHONY

The Directorate on Corruption and Economic Crime (DCEC) has reopened corruptions investigations against the Khama family business, Seleka Springs.

DCEC Director General Joseph Mathambo confirmed this week that they had reopened investigations against Seleka Springs because it has emerged that the investigations were stopped unduly because of external influence.

The case brings to 11, the total number of corruption cases being investigated by the DCEC implicating former President Lt Gen Ian Khama and his brother Tshekedi Khama.

It has since emerged that former President Lt Gen Khama interfered in DCEC investigations against himself and his brothers, Tshekedi and Anthony. Wikileaks has revealed that “during the August 8-10 conference of regional anti-corruption agencies, for example, DCEC director, Tymon Katlholo, acknowledged that Batswana often believe that the DCEC focuses on petty corruption and ignores corrupt practices by the wealthy and influential. In an August 10 conversation, Philliat Matsheza, Executive Director of Harare-based Human Rights Trust of Southern Africa relayed to PolOff an earlier conversation with Katlholo. The DCEC chief had told Matsheza that Vice President Khama had personally questioned him about an investigation into the (notoriously shady) business dealings of Khama’s younger twin brothers. (Note: Prof. Ken Good, the outspoken academic deported by the Government in May (Ref C), had highlighted suspicious transactions involving the Khama brothers and the Botswana Defense Force during Khama’s tenure as Commander.”)

Sunday Standard investigations have revealed that during Khama’s tenure as BDF commander, 26 companies represented by Tshekedi and Anthony monopolized the army procurement. In some cases false invoices are believed to have been raised to cheat the BDF out of millions of Pula.

Investigations have revealed that during Khama’s term as BDF commander, Seleka Springs supplied BDF with a consignment of 7.62 by 51mm tracer rounds allegedly from Zimbabwe. The rounds were originally supplied to the BDF by Czechoslovakia, the Zimbabwe Defence Industry labels were however superimposed over the Czechoslovakia label and the Khama brothers are believed to have generated false invoices for the consignment.

The Sunday Standard can reveal that in 1993, Lt Khama then BDF commander attended a military show in Coventry where he negotiated the procurement of Scorpion Armoured Fighting Vehicles Alvis, a British company. In February 1994 Tshekedi, then representing Alvis went with a BDF delegation to inspect the tanks. The evaluation report recommended against the procurement of the tanks, the procurement however went ahead.

It has also emerged that between 1989 and 1995 BDF procured most of its vehicles from Gaborone Delta, then owned by the Khama twins. After the Khama twins divested from Gaborone Delta and acquired Lobatse Delta, the BDF procurement from Gaborone Delta dropped from millions of Pula to nil while the army’s procurement from Lobatse Delta shot up to millions of pula. That was during the 1996/1997 period when Lt Gen Khama was BDF commander.

Sunday Standard can further reveal that in 1993, Automobile Assemblers then owned by the Khama twins supplied the BDF with Bedford TK Trucks. The trucks failed the normal trial tests but were bought by the BDF under Lt Gen Khama.

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