The saga in which former President Ian Khama and South African businesswoman Bridgette Motsepe are implicated in P100 billion allegedly stolen from Bank of Botswana took yet another twist this week with Botswana Accountancy Oversight Authority (BAOA) dismissing the matter as something shocking.
BAOA chief executive officer Duncan Majinda this week dismissed the controversial saga as shocking. Appearing before the Committee on Statutory Bodies and State Enterprises, Majinda said they were shocked as BAOA that P100 billion allegedly went missing at the Bank of Botswana.
Responding to committee member and Jwaneng/Mabutsane Member of Parliament Mephato Reatile who sought to know what the Authority’s opinion was on the money allegedly stolen from the central bank, Majinda briefly replied thus; “we are as shocked as you are about the P100 billion that people are talking about.”
Majinda who revealed that he had worked for the central bank for at least 10 years added that his Authority was still conducting reviews at Bank of Botswana. “It’s a coincidence that you have asked that question. We are still reviewing bank of Botswana and CEDA. We are reviewing them now. We are looking at financial reporting and auditing,” he said.
Back to the issue of P100 billion allegedly stolen from the central bank, Majinda said “there is no how our reports or those of the Auditor General cannot pick that.” He said the chairperson of Bank of Botswana and the Governor have to explain and “tell us why it is the case” during the course of the review by BAOA.
Reatile had sought to establish among others why BAOA did not include Bank of Botswana in its report that was presented before the committee. Reatile expressed concern that issues such as the alleged stolen P100 billion from Bank of Botswana were some of the issues that contributed to Botswana being grey listed by the European Union. He also sought to establish if the Authority had approached the Non-Banking Institutions Financial Regulatory Authority (NBFIRA) to find out about the P100 billion funds allegedly stolen from Bank of Botswana.
Reatile also commended Majinda for what he termed an exhibition of professionalism adding that it is rare to find people who are at the helm of parastatals in Botswana who can speak without fear.
