Fears of executives’ purge at Debswana
Sharon Mathala | Tuesday August 22, 2023 09:33
Mmegi is informed that up to eight executives around the country are being probed. The two firms (names supplied) are a major legal house with forensic and intelligence capabilities, as well as company that boasts of being a “digital forensics firm focusing on merging the traditional forensic investigative process with technology”.
The probe was allegedly instituted at De Beers’ request, as the diamond giant’s own intelligence reportedly picked some indications in the lead up to the tense June 30 diamond deal.
Government and De Beers sealed a groundbreaking deal at the last minute on June 30, following five years of negotiations. The deal, which both sides have hailed as transformative, will see Botswana’s share of Debswana’s produce rising to 50% from the current 25% in coming years. In addition, De Beers will also contribute P1 billion to a Diamonds for Development Fund while also making numerous other concessions.
Top Debswana officials from the Gaborone head office reportedly visited Orapa and Jwaneng this week where they introduced management to the South African investigators.
“The target is people at the mines who are the most likely to have improperly shared information with government,” an insider close to the latest developments told Mmegi.
“For issues such as resource allocation in the deal, how much each side gets from Debswana, the best people to talk about that are at the mines, not head office.
“The audit, however, is being masked as a normal internal process whilst the target is to then leverage on the information gathered and the digital forensic obtained to spy and extract the evidence to tie the executives,” the insider continued.
From 2019 to 30 minutes before midnight on June 30, high level negotiators from government were engaged in increasingly tense negotiations, with President Mokgweetsi Masisi threatening to walk out of the 54-year-old relationship if key concessions were not granted.
Mmegi is informed that De Beers’ officials in London picked up the scent of possible betrayal during their negotiations with government and after the deal was finalised, leaned on Debswana to investigate. While Debswana is a 50/50 joint venture between government and De Beers, operationally, the diamond giant has been responsible for the technical prowess.
A purge of sorts is alleged to be in the works at Debswana, where the results of the audit will be used to relocate executives suspected of misconduct. Mmegi is informed that the officials involved are mainly at the highest levels of management within the mines.
“The plan is not to fire anyone as that would be publicly damaging for De Beers and Debswana.
“Rather, people will be promoted or moved around, with some going to the new Venetia and others going all the way to London and to Anglo American.
“The thinking is to remain with executives that can be trusted to execute De Beers’ strategy under the new 10-year relationship with government,” insiders said.
The latest developments come amidst reports that Debswana has procured its own intelligence architecture outside the Directorate on Intelligence and Security. The architecture reportedly includes equipment and other technical resources.
The investment comes as Debswana continues a public image-bruising legal battle at the Court of Appeal against local spy firm, Infotrac. Debswana went to the Court of Appeal after the High Court last year ruled that it should pay InfotracP110 million for backdoor dealings that took place in 2018 that involved lobbying powerful personalities.
Responding to Mmegi enquiries on the alleged audit and purge yesterday afternoon, Debswana officials said the company operates an ethics reporting hotline through which it encourages the anonymous reporting of various malfeasance, including breach of internal policies, safety concerns, fraud and mismanagement.
“These reports are investigated, and the results and recommendations reported to senior management for corrective action in the event of the investigation revealing any issue which requires any form of corrective action,” said Agatha Sejoe, Corporate Affairs Manager – External
“When warranted, in line with our policies, these investigations may be handled by independent and sometimes forensic investigators.
“These will typically be audit and law firms with forensic capacity.”
She added: “All allegations are handled sensitively and confidentially as our employees are presumed innocent unless and until proven otherwise.
“De Beers does not participate in the investigations process.
“Our Board has ultimate oversight over these matters, through the Board Audit Committee.
“Debswana does not make public comment on internal investigations or reports, and it does not comment on matters pertaining to individual employees.”
De Beers’ officials offered a terse response to Mmegi’s questions, opting not to address specific enquiries made to the group.
“We are very pleased with the outcome of our negotiations with government as the deal we agreed represents a new partnership for a new era, and our agreement is a “win” for
Botswana, for De Beers, for the wider diamond industry, and for end clients,” said Otsile Mabeo Vice-President, Corporate Affairs at De Beers Group.
“More than anything, the agreement represents our confidence in the future of Botswana and the future of natural diamonds – and our commitment to continue playing a leading role in both.
“The negotiations for the new agreement were conducted with the highest professional standards and a commitment to ethical business principles throughout.”