It never rains but pours for former Botswana National Front member, Gabriel Kanjabanga, who was recently expelled from the party along with Lemogang Ntime for indiscipline.
BNF lawyer, Boingotlo Toteng, has confirmed that he has applied to the High Court for taxation of a legal bill he has slapped Kanjabanga with.
This follows after Kanjabanga had before the 2009 elections taken the party to Court on grounds that Ntime was not the rightful candidate for the Gaborone South constituency.
Kanjabanga later lost the case with costs and the Gaborone lawyer then appealed to the Court of Appeal but lost with costs again.
The former BNF Secretary General, Akanyang Magama, finally stood for elections on the eleventh hour but lost to the current Member of Parliament for Gaborone South, Kagiso Molatlhegi.
Magama’s loss in the former BNF stronghold constituency was partly blamed on the lengthy court case which saw the party concentrating on the Court case rather than campaigning.
Asked how much they are demanding from Kanjabanga, Toteng declined to say the figure but only said that they were “costs for the initial application and the appeal so it is a substantial amount”.
Kanjabanga, on the other hand, denies having any knowledge of money he owes BNF and said that if at all BNF wants him to pay it any money, it should as well pay him money “for all the legal battles, which were very involving, that I have done for them free of charge”.
Two weeks ago, Kanjabanga again threatened to take his former party to Court to challenge his recent expulsion but has since said that he has thought otherwise after consultation with some members of “his” party. Kanjabanga apparently still regards himself as a member of the BNF despite his expulsion.
In an unrelated Court matter against Kanjabanga, he is facing charges of corruption. The state alleges that Kanjabanga and Boitshwarelo Moreeng defrauded the Southern District Council of P399,000.
Kanjabanga has in the past tried to have the case permanently stayed in the High court on grounds that it had taken long to prosecute him, which is against the constitution that calls for a speedy trial, but the application was dismissed.
