Hundreds of senior civil servants are reportedly desperate to save their jobs following the dismissal of Directorate of Intelligence and Security (DIS) Isaac Kgosi from work by President Mokgweetsi Masisi.
It is understood that Masisi administration and his inner circle intends to weed out all alleged bad elements in the public service that had surrounded former President Ian Khama.
Last week Wednesday Masisi was hailed as the messiah after he fired Kgosi, a development that insiders at the government enclave describe as the president’s signal that he plans to chart a sharp departure from the previous administration’s approach to those linked to corruption and poor governance.
But Permanent Secretary to the President Carter Morupisi who is also said to be one of those that are expected to be booted out of the civil service downplayed the allegations.
According to Morupisi, “Whenever there is an Executive transition from one Head of State to another it is inevitable that there will be changes in personnel at both Cabinet and Senior Government Official level, as well as in administrative structures to deliver on its mandate.”
In a statement, Morupisi “On behalf of Government, I therefore wish to take this opportunity to reassure the public that such changes will, where necessary, occur in the context of our longstanding commitment and frameworks for good governance.”
He said that in its implementation of its development agenda, the new Administration will thus continue to be broadly guided by Government’s standing commitments to Vision 2036, National Development Plan (NDP) 11 and the current (2018-19) budgetary allocations as were approved by Parliament.
Masisi said where changes in personnel or structure have occurred since April 1st 2018, it has therefore been at the administrative rather than development policy level, as has been our tradition since independence.
“It is, therefore, the responsibility of His Excellency the President to ensure that he has a team in place to deliver on his mandate. This should not, however, be construed to mean that those who may have been either redeployed and or relieved in their duties have been found personally wanting,” said Morupisi.
He added that “Further to the above, the public may also be reassured that there is no ongoing “witch-hunt” in Government, as has been alleged in some quarters in media. Neither should such administrative changes be seen as a judgement on any previous administration.”
“Finally, we wish to note as a Government committed to the rule of law, as enshrined in the Constitution, we shall continue to respect the separation of powers and responsibilities in all potential judicial matters.
The Executive in this context will continue to respect the independence of the Judiciary and other independent oversight bodies,” Morupisi said.
Masisi’s predecessor, former President Ian Khama was under constant fire from the opposition and civil society for his inaction over senior civil servants linked to maladministration.
Masisi has replaced Kgosi with former Botswana Defence Force (BDF) head of ground forces Brigadier Peter Magosi who was in 2016. Masisi has also roped in Elias Magosi who quit public service as Permanent Secretary following his acrimonious relationship with Tourism Minister Tshekedi Khama.
