You may judge me with Matsheka’s case - CJ Ketlogetswe

Mpho Mokwape | Tuesday February 11, 2025 11:59

Justice Ketlogetswe, in a detailed speech touching base about his life experiences that also shaped his jurist future, like escaping a clear possibility of being a victim of ritual killing, explained that people may ask themselves if the experiences have affected how he approaches legal issues pertaining to cases allegedly associated with, or having resemblances of a ritual killing. “In short, do I look at those cases and I appear to be biased against those accused, either wrongly or rightly, of being suspected to be perpetrators? Do I forget my duty as a judge, to judge according to law and justly, following the law and my good conscience when dealing with such cases, because of my personal history? You be the judge on this one, but my answer is a big NO! Even under the most extreme of pressures I have never, and will never bend over when it comes to doing justice according to law,” he said. In his opening of the Legal Year remarks on Tuesday, Justice Ketlogetswe reminded the nation of his encounter with the case of former Lobatse legislator Thapelo Matsheka, whom he said in a reverse of fortunes, had appeared before him under circumstances that one, would not wish against a fellow mortal. He stated the sceptics would have expected him to keep him in prison for no reason and then today, they would be saying; okay now we understand. And, 'I assure you my countrymen, the people of Botswana that you can trust me, and with me, trust your Judiciary to serve the people of Botswana with humility. Why have I given you this synoptic history of the person whom the President has appointed as your Chief Justice? Some people have also, rightly in my view, pointed to the history of my previous life as a student activist, and later in the political space, and sought to wonder as to why I had to traverse that path,” CJ said. He basked in the glory that God was preparing him for the moment that he was being chiselled out, moulded, shaped and refined into the persona that people see today and had to be an almost victim of crime, so that could, in his later exalted life, fully understand the plight and trauma of the poor and the underprivileged.

Justice Ketlogetswe noted that he had to be a politician, so that as head of the Judiciary, he should interact with the future role players in the political space of the divide. “I have been an accused in a court of law, so that I could understand what it means, in real terms to be presumed innocent until proven guilty. God was preparing me for this moment, I still say. But why so? I ask this question but only on your behalf, because some of you may be asking yourselves: Does a judge or judicial officer’s personal history and social class play any role on how they approach legal issues?” retorted the CJ. He concluded about his life experiences that he comes from the very humblest of the humble background and that he steeped in the traditions of humility and botho. Justice Ketlogetswe stated that people who may find him to be too humble, even to a point of meekness, it is not because he is a fool or stupid, but he grew up fearing God, and he still is, and will continue to be. “I belong to the poor and the weak, the vulnerable of our society,” he said.

Ritual killings

On his stance about the seemingly increasing ritual killings, CJ said they have also recognised that cases of ritual killings have become a scourge, needing new approaches in the nature of training investigators, prosecutors and judicial officers in the handling of such cases. “This will be done as a matter of urgency, as we recognise that cases of ritual killings pose a real and serious threat to the security and safety of our people. Go lebega e kare bo rraboko ba ta itaola thata. Their conduct must therefore, be brought to an abrupt end by an effective crime detection and prosecution justice system,” he stated. He explained that he has given, in broad outlines, the road that the Judiciary will be travelling on in the near future and in the days to come.

The Judiciary On the judicial overhaul, the CJ explained that the kind of judiciary that they envisage is the one that will be forward-looking in focus, business-like in approach, innovative in its operations, adaptable to the ever-changing world of technological developments and generally agile in the execution of its mandate. “And by the judiciary, I am referring to the Court of Appeal, the High Courts and the Magistrates’ Courts, who are collectively the hosts of this Legal Year Opening ceremony,” Ketlogetswe explained. He emphasised that the judiciary that they envisage is one that will be astute enough to recognise the value of developing its human capital in the full recognition that they are a learning organisation that must always up-skill and re-tool its human resources by way of continuous learning and reshaping their soft skills.

Justice Ketlogetswe maintained that they recognise the importance of building a team out of the individuals making up the human capital of the organisation, to a point where they would be unrecognisable as individuals, but highly recognisable and identifiable as a team, founded on Botho in the service of the people. “That is, what is it that we see ourselves being as we peep further into the infinite horizon? Where and how do we see ourselves in the future outlook of our organisation? In terms of our vision, in the Administration of Justice. We envision ourselves as a world class Judiciary,” the CJ emphasised. He explained that the future outlook of any organisation depends on its time-tested organisational culture and the Judiciary of Botswana has always sought to provide a world class service to the people by remaining independent, impartial, ethical and selflessly humble in the discharge of its mandate. The CJ stated that the judges and magistrates have always tried to do everything possible in their power to remain the pride of the democratic dispensation. “Having been tasked with the responsibility of leading this Judiciary, my promise to the people of Botswana is to build a team of judicial officers and support staff that will make our Judiciary the envy of the African continent,” Ketlogetswe promised.