Information gleaned from the DCEC docket on its investigations against Directorate of Intelligence and Security Services (DIS) Director General, Isaac Kgosi reveals how the spy chief took close to P1million from Louis Nchindo at a time when the former Debswana Managing Director was on trial for corruption. According to a transcript of the DCEC interview with Kgosi, conducted by Don Mackenzie in the presence of DCEC Director General Rose Seretse, Kgosi admitted taking P900 000 from Nchindo after Nchindo had been charged with corruption and had already appeared in court. The transcript in part of a sheaf of documents contained in the docket referenced DOC/IF/2011/001166 (27) opened by DCEC relating to its investigation against Kgosi. Explaining how he acquired his property in Sentlhane farms, Kgosi told the DCEC that while he was already DIS Director general, he received a P900 000 gift from Nchindo to buy the property. Kgosi took over as DIS Director General on April 2008, four months after Nchindo made his first appearance in court to answer charges of corruption. Below we publish verbatim, excerpts from the interview between Don Mackenzie (DJM) of DCEC and Director General Kgosi (DGK); DGK ÔÇô Well I have property in Mmokolodi, like I said I bought from an action DJM ÔÇô Is that….. funding? When did you buy that? DGK ÔÇô Well that was, I started I would not give you the exact date of what we call because I think is in 2009 or so. I was assisted by the late Nchindo. He is dead. The old man is dead. DJM ÔÇô And when you say assisted by Mr. Nchindo, how did he assist you? DGK ÔÇô No he was close to me, he was very close to me and then he was like a father figure to me and then I told him about it and that I wanted to buy it and so forth and then he said go and buy it and I said I don’t want to apply for any loan because I still have a loan and then he said I will help you out. Because usually he does, he used to help out when I was in the thing, during the Serowe North Development Trust, he would may be give in a cheque and so forth so he assisted in that and gave me money to pay for it. DJM ÔÇô Did he give you all the money to pay for it? DGK – He gave me part of it and then he paid the rest later DJM ÔÇô Do you mind if I just clarify how much money approximately that he gave you and no no I need just wanna clarify how much did the farm cost? DGK ÔÇô Well it was close to P 900 when you add other things, I paid for the others taxes and so forth I paid for that. And then he paid for the rest. DJM – So you paid for the extras and he paid for the substance so he would have about P900 000 and that was just given to you as a gift to somebody that he was close to DGK ÔÇô Well yah I would say so, like I said I was very close to him. DJM ÔÇô Who was the auction though? DGK ÔÇô I will have to find that out from the records, I don’t know DJM ÔÇô You can’t remember but you would be able to find the records and get that information and when he paid the money did he pay directly to the auctioneer? DGK ÔÇô No I went to him and got the thing and paid the cash DJM ÔÇô so he gave you P900 000 cash? DGK ÔÇô No at first it was about four I think and the second trench was another 4 or 5 something like that DJM ÔÇô In both times it was provided in cash DGK ÔÇô Yes if I remember well yah DJM ÔÇô Why didn’t it go into your bank account and go out again? DGK ÔÇô N0, no DJM ÔÇô So he paid about P900 000 in cash that was passed to purchase the property and you paid additional amounts and that was from you accumulated funds in your account. And this all happened in 2009 DGK – Yes I paid from my bank account and it was 2009, 2008 DJM ÔÇô But definitely before you became Director General of DIS DGK ÔÇô No I was Director General by then because he was on pension he was not working. (interview goes back and forth until Mackenzie asked if anyone was aware of the gift) DJM ÔÇô Is there anyone who can confirm the gift DGK ÔÇô Well I don’t know because Nchindo used to do his things covertly he never wanted people to know what he did and so forth Sunday Standard will next week publish excerpts from the interview on how Kgosi acquired other properties. This is a preview of what the public should expect when the National Amalgamated Local Central Government & Parastatal Workers Union (NALG&PAU) case finally goes to court. The country’s biggest workers union last week slapped the Attorney General with a statutory notice that it intends to institute action in the High Court for a Writ of Mandamus directing head of DCEC Rose Seretse “to forward to the DPP a docket referenced DOC/IF/2011/001166 (27) opened by DCEC relating to an investigation against one Isaac Seabelo Kgosi (“kgosi”), the Director General of the Directorate of Intelligence and Security Services (“DISS”).A (writ of) mandamus (more modernly called a “writ of mandate”) is an order from a court to a government official ordering the government official to properly fulfil their official duties or correct an abuse of discretion.
According to the statutory notice prepared by NALG&PAU lawyers, Collins Chilisa Consultants, in the event the DPP decides against prosecuting Kgosi, the DPP should be ordered to “avail our client the said docket together with its entire contents and exhibits, both documentary and no-documentary, as well as the DPP’s reasons therefor, to enable our client to institute proceedings in the High Court for an order reviewing, correcting and/ or setting aside his decision.” A similar case was recently launched by the South African Democratic Alliance for a review of the Public Prosecutors’ decision to withdraw charges against former South African police crime intelligence head Richard Mdluli. The North Gauteng High Court in Pretoria ordered that charges against Mdluli be restored. The High Court decision was two months ago upheld by the South African Supreme Court of Appeal following an unsuccessful appeal by the National Prosecuting Authority.
