Court interdict dampens nurses' festive day
Tsaone Basimanebotlhe | Tuesday August 30, 2022 06:51
The Botswana Nurses Union (BONU), Directorate of Public Service Management (DPSM), Ministry of Health, and the Attorney General (AG) are at loggerheads with unions that have nurses in their membership.
This follows after Botswana Land Boards Local Authorities Workers Union (BLLAWU), Botswana Public Employees Union (BOPEU), and National Amalgamated Central, Local and Parastatal Manual Workers' Union took the matter to court arguing that no Nurses’ Day will be celebrated without their participation. According to a temporary court order that Lobatse High Court judge, Reuben Lekorwe issued, DPSM, the health ministry, and the AG were interdicted from proceeding with the 2022 Nurses’ Day celebrations.
“The above-mentioned respondents, their agents, or any person acting under their instructions be interdicted and restrained from proceeding with the 2022 Nurses' Day celebrations and the Presidential Nurses Awards billed for tomorrow, August 25, 2022, pending consultation,” reads the order.
The interim order explained that pending consultation with applicant unions on consultative matters such as employee awards and alternatively, pending institution and finalisation of the review application to be held within 60 days from the date of this order, there will be no celebrations.
Further, the interdiction is that there would be no awarding the applicants' members who form part of the nursing cadre with any award, performance-related or otherwise, pending consultation on the awards with the applicant unions or pending institution and finalisation of an application seeking to review and set aside the decision of the ministry.
“The respondents pay costs of the suit and pending the return date the interim interdict shall operate. In the interim, the respondents shall file their answering affidavits not later than August 31, 2022, and the applicants their replying affidavits not later than September 7, 2022. The parties shall file heads of argument not later than September 12, 2022,” states the order. Meanwhile, BONU president, Peter Baleseng told The Monitor that the Botswana Federation of Public, Private & Parastatal Sector Unions (BOFEPUSU) affiliates' move has embarrassed them.
“Our members have made a resolution that we must move out of BOFEPUSU. What shocked us most is that we had met a week before the day of this event and we had pleaded with the concerned unions that it is important that we discuss the issue after the event and map the way forward.
They complained that they should be part of the planning for this event since they have nurses as well in their unions. We believe we could have resolved this matter within BOFEPUSU. What they did shows that they cannot work well with us.” In addition, he said they are going to stop their monthly subscription to BOFEPUSU, which is P15,000. He said they will formally inform BOFEPUSU next week Tuesday in writing.