No chance for fired Air Botswana pilot
Mpho Mokwape | Tuesday March 15, 2022 06:00
The pilot, Keabetswe Sekgwama who has been challenging his dismissal from aviation made a final attempt at the Court of Appeal where he was trying to seek leave to appeal the decision of the High Court.
He was trying to challenge the High Court’s decision that found out that he was fired as a result of refusing to undergo psychological evaluation when the letter of his dismissal gave incapacitation as the reason.
However, Justice Singh Walia on Friday threw his application out on grounds that he has failed to table enough reasons on exceptional circumstances accounting for the delay to file the appeal and very strong prospects for success if given a chance.
“The grounds of appeal are silent on many things and even on whether or not the court below was in error in having regard to the prior conduct of the applicant,” he said.
The judge explained that the circumstances accounting for the delay advanced were a combination of things including negligence by the pilot’s attorneys, which he pointed out was unacceptable as exceptional circumstances.
Justice Walia said the pilot was the architect of his difficulties because the real reason for the delay appeared from his averments that he was at the same time as the case giving rise to the application, engaged in a criminal trial and that his resources were channelled to it at the cost of his proposed appeal.
“The applicant fares no better on prospects of success. He suggests that the court below was in error in finding that his dismissal was the result of refusal to undergo psychological evaluation when the letter of dismissal gave incapacitation as the reason,” Walia said.
He emphasized that the grounds advanced by the pilot were shallow and lacked any particularity of the alleged errors by the court below.
The judge further noted that the pilot should be aware that requirements of exceptional circumstances and strong prospects of success are conjunctive therefore the weakness of the one could not be compromised by the strength of the other.
Meanwhile, the circumstances stated briefly leading to the applicant’s dismissal were that he had been suspended from duty on account that he was facing some serious criminal charges.
The suspension was on an understanding created by the pilot that the criminal proceedings would come to an end within two or three weeks.
However, some months later it is stated that there was no end in sight and Air Botswana, in order not to remain understaffed for an indeterminate period, terminated his services.
“Before the suspension, the pilot had received a final warning for refusing to subject himself to a psychiatric evaluation. That episode had no bearing on the termination of his services,” read the court papers.