BOSETU exec’s lawyers demand P200k payout
Goitsemodimo Kaelo | Wednesday August 13, 2025 08:46
This follows BOFUS’s decision to withdraw the case against Mogapi last week Monday in court. The issue appears to be part of a larger conflict between Mogapi and the union, marked by allegations of workplace harassment, mistreatment, and factionalism. It is said that Mogapi had wanted punitive costs awarded against his ‘employers’ for what he termed wasting the court’s time, and wanted the court to settle the main case which BOFUS had brought against him. However, he was dissatisfied with the court’s order to award costs on an attorney and own client scale. In a letter seen by this publication, Mogapi’s lawyers, Rasetshwane Attorneys, have written to BOFUS's legal representatives demanding P200,000 in legal fees over the matter.
The letter states that Mogapi is dissatisfied with the court order for several reasons, including that the application for withdrawal was set down prematurely—just after he had filed his answering affidavit and before the time had lapsed for filing a replying affidavit. It further argues that if the applicant had no locus standi to bring the main application, it follows that they equally lacked the locus standi to apply for withdrawal. The lawyers further argue, on Mogapi’s behalf, that a determination was necessary to address allegations of impropriety against him and to clarify issues in other pending litigation between the parties. Mogapi has endured a troubled time at the union since February this year.
He was suspended by BOSETU’s leadership, led by vice president Charles Tsiane, in February, following an anonymous letter alleging misconduct by senior executives. He challenged his suspension, and the Industrial Court declared it unlawful, finding it in violation of labour procedures outlined in the BOSETU Constitution. The internal conflicts within BOSETU have raised concerns about the union’s leadership, with sources suggesting that decision-making is influenced more by personal relationships and favouritism than by proper administrative processes. “Our client is considering lodging an appeal against the decision aforesaid, and he is well within the timelines for doing so. However, it is becoming increasingly unnecessary to have parties embroiled in the litigation (which will no doubt take no less than one year to conclude), and in the process compromising business at BOSETU and its subsidiaries,” reads the letter in part.