About P4m allegation throw Boko, Khama into controversy
Mpho Mokwape | Sunday November 9, 2025 12:50
The claims, by a suspended Directorate of Intelligence and Security (DIS) officer, who has taken the government to court, alleging that her arrest and suspension were based on false accusations linking her to a P4m payment and political funding involving Khama and the Umbrella for Democratic Change (UDC).
In documents filed before the High Court, Pulane Kgoadi, who was the director of legal at the DIS, says she was accused by the police and DIS officers of receiving the money from suspects she had previously investigated in an unrelated fraud case.
According to her founding affidavit this week, where she is seeking relief, including the interim interdict to stop her disciplinary hearing, she states that officers, Senior Superintendent Mangoyi and one by the name Olebile, had claimed that she worked with the former president to launder money from international sources to fund the UDC’s political activities.
“The investigators further alleged that they were in possession of correspondence linking me, the former president, UDC officials, and even the current President of Botswana,” she said.
Kgoadi denied all the allegations, saying the accusations were created to discredit her and her team, who were investigating misconduct at Air Botswana under instructions from the then-president, Mokgweetsi Masisi.
In her affidavit, Kgoadi says the investigation she led looked into issues of safety, maladministration, and national security at Air Botswana. She claims that all material gathered, including an audio recording of a whistle-blower interview, was submitted to the Permanent Secretary to the President (PSP), Emma Peloetletse, for the President’s attention.
However, Kgoadi alleges that the DIS Director General, Peter Magosi, who was one of the subjects of the investigation, was later informed about the confidential assignment and was given access to sensitive material from the probe.
She says the information was shared improperly by the PSP and that following this, Kgoadi claims that Peloetletse initiated a separate investigation against her and four other officers, which led to their suspension and arrest.
“The intent was to undermine the original investigation and damage the credibility of those involved,” she states in her affidavit.
She was arrested on March 21, 2024, and released two days later. During that time, her home and office were searched and her devices seized. The searches were designed to confiscate evidence related to the Air Botswana investigation.
Through her attorneys, Monthe Marumo Attorneys, Kgoadi has written to the Police Commissioner, seeking to confirm whether the P4m allegedly recovered from her is in police custody, and whether the secondment of police officers to the DIS during the investigation was formally authorised.
The letter, dated October 28, 2025, and addressed to Police Commissioner Dinah Marathe, also asks whether the police have any documents allegedly linking her to political figures.
“Given the gravity of the matter and its implications for both national security and the rule of law, we wish to consult with you urgently,” states the letter.
Kgoadi further argues that the disciplinary process against her is invalid, saying it is based on an unlawful investigation.
She relies on a judgment delivered on December 13, 2024, by Justice Boipuso Makhwe, which found that the PSP acted beyond its powers in ordering investigations into DIS officers.
The judge had ruled that only the President or the Director General (if not conflicted) could order such investigations under the Intelligence and Security Service Act. “That finding has never been challenged or overturned. The disciplinary proceedings built on that unlawful investigation are therefore invalid.” Kgoadi states.
Her affidavit also details procedural concerns about the handling of her disciplinary hearing, stressing that she was not given adequate access to documents and witnesses necessary for her defence and that she was prohibited from contacting any DIS employees while on suspension.
She adds that the disciplinary panel has ignored her objections about the fairness and legality of the process.
“I was prevented from consulting relevant records, potential witnesses, and my legal representatives. This has compromised my constitutional right to a fair hearing,” she says.
She also claims that the disciplinary charges against her are vague and unsupported by evidence, as one of the charges accuses her of falsehood or prevarication, allegedly altering official documents.
Kgoadi says no part of the investigation report shows that she destroyed or changed any records, pointing out that the report offers no proof of alteration or destruction.
“It simply states that I instructed a colleague to make copies of a case file, which cannot reasonably be described as an act of falsification,” her affidavit reads.
Kgoadi further argues that her continued suspension, which began in April 2024, is unlawful because it has lasted more than six months without conclusion of the disciplinary process.
The DIS’s own disciplinary code, she says, requires that the hearings be conducted without unnecessary delay.
She contended that the suspension has become punitive rather than precautionary and that it has caused personal and professional harm and serves no legitimate purpose.
Her legal team contends that the disciplinary proceedings breach the DIS’s own rules, particularly those requiring that charges be supported by evidence from a proper investigation and that an accused officer be given every facility to prepare their defence.
Kgoadi concluded that the issue is about fairness and adherence to the rule of law, and not just about the disciplinary hearing. She argues that it is about ensuring that due process is followed and that no officer is punished for carrying out lawful duties.
The High Court is expected to hear the urgent application while the case names several respondents, including the Attorney General, the Chairperson, and members of the disciplinary board handling Kgoadi’s case, the Director General of the DIS, the PSP, and investigator Tebogo Bagopi.