Magosi promises to stop ‘Hollywood style’ arrests
Mompati Tlhankane | Sunday May 15, 2022 19:54
Magosi, who was appearing before the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) on Wednesday was responding to a question from Member of Parliament (MP) for Bobonong Taolo Lucas who had asked if the DIS could not question people silently without making all the noise. “The way you guys operate I think sometimes has a potential of even contaminating the psyche of the nation. There is that drama associated with the way you work like the sirens and the guys with guns. I think there is way you can go about your work quietly without attracting too much attention,” Lucas blatantly told Magosi.
For his part Jwaneng-Mabutsane legislator, Mephato Reatile said he is concerned by the advertisement DIS makes when they do arrests. “When you arrest certain people you inform the media. This was revealed when you detained the police commissioner recently. This causes embarrassment of the highest order in an organisation which Batswana had been giving a lot of respect,” he said.
Reatile said the backlash shows that there was lack of professionalism in the way the DIS operated when they arrested people. He told Magosi to train his officers if at all they have not been trained when it comes to these issues. “This is not shooting movies but it is about protecting the country,” he said. One of the members of the PAC and Francistown South legislator, Wynter Mmolotsi said he once witnessed a convoy of DIS vehicles with sirens just to arrest one person. “How can the DIS dramatise an arrest by using 12 vehicles just to arrest one person,” he asked. Mmolotsi also said the DIS is extravagant in performing their duties.
Magosi was quick to indicate that he had taken heed of the PAC’s concern especially on the issue of sirens. He said where they can be able to reduce noise they will do. He further said he is hamstrung to reveal how they operate because there are reasons why they take certain actions or steps. Magosi, however, denied that the DIS publicises arrests. In the case of suspended Police Commissioner, Keabetswe Makgophe’s arrest, Magosi admitted that they are aware that the information of his arrest was leaked to the media but it is not true that the DIS disclosed that information.
“I would not allow any uncalled action to take place under my command. There are operational issues and things the public may not know of, that we are looking at,” he said. Magosi added that if there is anything being overdone he will reduce it and take action.
“I cannot tolerate any sort of intimidation. People have been detained yes but it is not exactly arrests. Depending on the direction of our interviews we are required to detain people. I know and I am aware of each and every action that takes place so I will never at any stage allow unlawful actions,” he highlighted. Concerning some of the people the DIS had detained and released, Magosi assured the PAC that some of the cases will reach the courts of law soon.
Last month in Parliament, the Assistant Minister for State President Dumezweni Mthimkhulu rose in the DIS’s defence saying he was not aware if the spy agency could publicise arrests since their operations are covert. He lamented that he does not believe the DIS could publisise that since it is not supposed to in accordance with its Act.
“You cannot do covert operations and publicise them to the public,” he said. Mthimkhulu maintained that the investigations of the DIS are by nature covert operations because they gather intelligence in a covert way. He said it would be unfortunate if the DIS calls the media whenever there is an arrest. Mthimkhulu was responding to the Leader of Opposition, Dumelang Saleshando who had asked the Minister to state the number of arrests carried out by the DIS in the last three years.
Saleshando had further asked why the DIS publicises the arrests and even invites the media to cover the incidents. “The DIS arrests people publicly not in a covert manner and they have the option of arresting people in a covert manner but their arrests are done in full glare of the public,” Saleshando added. He said if such arrests were indeed covert there is no way the press would be able to know when and where the arrests would be made. “The DIS does invite journalists to cover,” he said.
Recent DIS high profile arrests include suspended Police Commissioner, Makgophe, Khama twin brothers Anthony and Tshekedi, the latter’s wife Thea Khama, former commissioner-general of the Botswana Unified Revenue Service (BURS), Ken Morris and former executive employees of the Department of Wildlife and National Parks (DW&NP).
Before the recent arrests, it all started with the dramatic arrest of former DIS director-general, Isaac Kgosi at the Sir Seretse Khama International Airport in January 2019. In a movie style sting, Kgosi was nabbed by a team of intelligence officers and other law enforcement, handcuffed and taken into custody upon his return from India. The incident took place in front of media and was coordinated by Magosi, Kgosi’s successor. Magosi personally escorted Kgosi to waiting vehicles outside the airport.