The Botswana National Front (BNF) secretary general Ketlhalefile Motshegwa has said as a general proposition in a democratic society, the police must be protected against any perception of being manipulated by private interests. He said the police play a critical role in the security of both the country and its citizens adding that the police service is a public institution of the state, and must remain so.
He said BNF has noted with grave concern the announcement of “adopt a police station initiative”. “This initiative is a first step towards the capture of our criminal justice system. As the BNF, we call on civil society and the nation at large to reject this initiative with the contempt it deserves,” said Motshegwa.
He said their rejection of this initiative is premised on the following; “The initiative will surrender the police service to the parochial interests of businesses, the corrupt elite and those who are politically connected. The critical question is how will the police objectively investigate cases against businesses that are sponsoring police stations?
The initiative has the potential to compromise the integrity, objectivity, professionalism and independence of the whole police service. The old adage that there is no free lunch is applicable here, especially in our capitalism driven and predatory economic system. The initiative will seriously compromise the police objectivity in investigation of cases lodged against those (and their associates) who sponsor police stations.
There is currently no guiding policy framework or law that will regulate this initiative and this gap will result in abuse and total capture of the police service.
There is no Parliamentary oversight or any oversight measures to ensure that the initiative is not abused and utilised for nefarious reasons by those who will sponsor police stations.
As a nation, we must guard against the unregulated interaction between the police and businesses, especially in instances where the exchange of money is involved. The initiative poses a serious threat to the independence of the police, the Criminal Justice system and our constitutional democracy as a whole.
Cases opened by the poor, working class and the powerless against businesses and the elites will be seriously compromised during police investigations. It is an eyesore for the police to be in bed with business and the elites under the guise of charitable donations. We recall the Jackie Selebi scandal where a South African Police Commissioner was charged and convicted for accepting bribes from a corrupt businessman in exchange of police protection. We should not allow this cancer to creep into our police service.
The BNF appeals to the Police Commissioner to immediately revoke this initiative. We call on the government to provide sufficient funding towards policing and the maintenance of police stations. Our police service must never be turned into a charity case and exposed to corrupt and unethical business elements who desire to capture the police service. The initiative is nothing but an acceptance that the current Mokgweetsi Masisi led government is failing to fund the police service to ensure that our people live in a peaceful and crime-free society.
The Police Commissioner and the State President must be ashamed of themselves.