Facebook post lands Malete in hot soup
Mqondisi Dube | Monday February 23, 2026 06:00
Malete, employed as a BFA development officer, in a parting message, acknowledged former BFA president Maclean Letshwiti and appeared to ignore the current leadership.
It was under Letshwiti's reign that Malete was elevated to the position of Mares coach at the end of 2023.
'Today, my journey as head coach of the Mares comes to an end. It has been a true privilege to serve and lead this incredible team. I extend my sincere gratitude to the former Botswana Football Association president, Mr Letshwiti, for his trust and unwavering support throughout my tenure,' he wrote in the post.
Malete also expressed gratitude to the general manager-national teams, Monnakgotla Mojaki, but there was no other mention of BFA executives.
The post reportedly riled leadership at local football’s supreme authority, with BFA president, Tariq Babitseng, indicating that they will look at the issue, and if there was any violation, action will be taken against Malete.
'His employment contract with the BFA stipulates what he has to do or not do. If he contravened his contract, action will be taken. As the president, I am disappointed if indeed that post came from him. It is uncalled for, it is unprofessional,' Babitseng said.
'If you are intertwined in politics, you cannot serve under my leadership,' he added.
Malete was dropped from the team at the 11th-hour before departure for the COSAFA tournament. However, Babitseng said Malete was asked by the technical director (TD), Kaelo Kaelo, to concentrate on his role as the development officer.
'The Mares were called to camp, and when the final squad was announced, we sat down with the TD to ask him what necessitated the choice of players called up, looking at the fact that the COSAFA cup is a platform to showcase upcoming talent.
'We need to give young players who are the future of the Mares, or we need to gel the two, so that new ones understand the expectation of the tournament,' Babitseng said.
He added that they evaluated the technical department as a whole and identified that the youth structures were dysfunctional.
'If you look at the Mares, there is no transition. I asked the TD to give me the youth development plan to know what they are doing. There is no youth transition in our national teams. Some players are not playing, yet they get called up, yet we have a running league,' he said.
'What is our youth development office doing about integration, and this touches on Alex Malete's role at BFA? That is what we are paying him for every month, for the plans and processes.'
He said Malete was seconded to the Mares and that is why he went to the Women's Africa Cup of Nations finals in Morocco.
'He was paid as a youth development officer and was seconded to the Mares. He was not double paid. This time around, he was asked by the technical director to concentrate on the report on youth development, which we had asked about. Therefore, he was told not to go with the team,' Babitseng explained.
Whilst tough-talking Babitseng said the door was not closed for Malete to return to the Mares. Former coach, Galethoo 'Ronaldo' Nkutlwisang, is in charge of the Mares at the COSAFA Cup.