Peloetletse dismisses corruption allegations
Spira Tlhankane | Tuesday August 19, 2025 08:58
Peloetletse, who is married to the most powerful civil servant in the country, was quick to indicate from the onset that his wife’s success does not define him, as people continue to link him with his spouse.
In an exclusive interview with Mmegi at his office in Tlokweng this week, Peloetletse said people are targeting his wife through him. He said that the same people continue to peddle reports that his wife is corrupt.
Joe’s Electrical was recently the subject of a debate in Parliament when a question was asked about its involvement in government tenders. Tswapong South, legislator Dr Kesitegile Gobotswang had questioned the ‘conflict of interest’ in awarding government tenders to Joe Electrical.
Dr Gobotswang wanted to know the total number of public projects that Joe’s Electrical is involved in, and the projects where Joe’s Electrical has benefited through direct appointment, and whether there were no other qualified companies that could have benefited in the same way.
“To tell you the truth, mosadi wame bamo pateletsa gase motho wa di tenders. Tenders are advertised in the Government Gazette. I have been in this industry for many years, and I found whites and chased them away with my hard work. When I entered the scene in 1989, we found whites, and we worked hard to be where we are. Projects incubation doesn’t come from the Office of the President (OP); they may be briefed, possibly, but this comes from different government departments,” Peloetletse disclosed.
With Gobotswang having questioned the conflict of interest in Peloetletse doing business with the government, the PSP’s husband admitted that a conflict of interest could arise if a tender comes straight from OP.
He said when it comes to other government departments, he is free to tender just like any other Motswana. “Yes, I am going to continue to tender, I am running a business which employs 80 people, I am paying a lot of tax, I am going to tender and no one is going to stop me, they can tarnish my image as they have done, by I will not be disheartened,” Peloetletse pointed out.
He also said what was said about his company in Parliament was to paint him and scare people from giving him jobs. “It is not fair because I married my wife in 2000, and he found me already running this business for many years. I started in 1989, I don’t have any profession besides this job, and I grew up in this company because I started it in my youth days. I don’t know where they want me to go,” Peloetletse further emphasised.
He revealed that since his wife became PSP, it has cost him jobs because people don’t want to be associated with the corrupt allegations they read about in the media. He says he has been without a government job for 10 years. “When I got the Maitengwe Police station job in 2017, my wife was not PSP and I was subcontracted,” he noted. In response to Gobotswang’s question, the Minister of Transport and Infrastructure, Noah Salakae, said that according to the available records, there was one project in the Ministry where Joe Electrical was involved.
“In October 2017, the company was subcontracted by ENGi-CON (Pty) Ltd, which was the main contractor, to undertake the Electrical Component of the construction of Maitengwe Police Station. Be advised that the main contractor was terminated on March 7, 2025, due to non-performance. The scheduled completion time was May 7, 2019,” he said.
Gobotswang indicated in Parliament that he was unsatisfied and that he would bring the question back, and specifically ask about Legacy Pursuit Proprietary Limited, a company in which Peloetletse is a shareholder through his company Joe’s Electrical.
Legacy Pursui was previously subject to controversy when, in 2023, a whistleblower wrote a complaint letter to then-President Mokgweetsi Masisi. The whistleblower complained about Legacy Pursuit’s involvement in the police station’s lucrative tender. The whistleblower raised serious questions about the fairness and legality of procurement decisions.
When asked about Legacy Pursuit and its involvement in government tenders, Peloetletse told Mmegi that as a result of the letter penned by the whistleblower and the bad image that was painted after Legacy Pursuit did not get the job, and eventually died a natural death.
He said that because of false reports that he is corrupt, he once insisted on stepping down from the Legacy Pursuit, but his partners refused. He admitted that this affected the company because it was eventually disqualified from the police tender. “Legacy Pursuit was a company of Batswana seeking to do mega projects. We grouped ourselves as Batswana to do turnkey projects for the government and approach banks for financing. It was a group of companies that had no less than 30 years in their fields. The project failed as our name was soiled in the media. Banks refused to work with us, and we were rejected. We ended up abandoning it, and we have given up. There is no hope that Batswana can do mega projects, so we will continue being led by foreign companies,” he sadly said. Peloetletse said if what happened to them continues, the door for Batswana to grow is being closed. Peloetletse indicated that Legacy Pursuit was like an insult to their competitors.
Although he seemed unworried as he answered questions, Peloetletse admitted that these allegations affect him very much. “My wife says she has a thick skin, I don’t have a thick skin”.
He said these allegations affect the banks he asks loans from because of the bad image.
“I am now becoming politically exposed. Even when I tender, adjudicators won’t consider me in fear of the bad image some people have crafted about us,” he says.
Looking back, Peloetletse said these allegations of corruption against his family all started after his wife became PSP. He said even when his wife was the Accountant General at Finance, he knew that he could not tender at the ministry.
“l have never failed any job, I have electrified many villages. I am 64 years old, and I am not going to give up until I am 75. I am just an electrician, I love my job, but otherwise I would have quit,” he emphasised.
He said even with all these corrupt allegations against his family, he demands to be engaged fairly. “I don’t want to engage in any corrupt activities; it hurts me to be painted this way. I have got nothing but hard work, and I don’t accept bribes. I work 12 hours a day,” he said.
When it comes to tenders, he said he agrees with what President Duma Boko always says about the tendering world. “Tenders don’t work; I have lost hope in tenders, especially the way they have been run. I welcome a direct appointment because tenders don’t work. I have been here 10 years with no work, and I have never won any work through normal tendering or direct appointment.”
Peloetletse dismissed and laughed off rumours that he is a member of the DIS.