CTO Gov’t fleet crisis deepens as vehicles grounded
Lewanika Timothy | Monday March 23, 2026 08:06
A visit by Mmegi to the workshops in Gaborone revealed rows of government vehicles parked bumper to bumper, many of them grounded for years, according to sources within GFM. Some units, including relatively new models, depicted signs of being parked for years, raising concerns over asset deterioration and wastage. Mechanics at the facility, speaking on condition of anonymity, painted a troubling picture of a system under strain.
“Government-owned vehicles have been piling up for years, some waiting for parts and some waiting to be sent to private garages for servicing. Some of these cars came here seeking minor attention; now they are aging here with the government claiming to not have sufficient funds to fix them,” said one mechanic.
The bottlenecks appear to extend beyond funding shortages, with insiders alleging structural inefficiencies in procurement and maintenance processes. Another senior mechanic stationed at the workshop handling Botswana Police Service (BPS) vehicles said the government was finding it difficult to fix cars due to the costly sourcing of parts, which was mainly exacerbated by unfair pricing from local car dealerships.
“Government is being overcharged for the price of parts by dealerships. Most of them claim that they overcharge because the government doesn’t pay cash but issues GPOs. But even then, the price they charge when the government is the buyer is over the roof,” he said. “In some instances, the prices of parts in South Africa dealerships are half of what local dealerships charge the government.”
These cost distortions are apparently compounding delays in repairs, leaving critical government fleets grounded for extended periods. The BPS is among the hardest hit government departments. At the CTO yard in Village, numerous police vehicles were seen parked, some believed to have been involved in accidents, while others awaited basic inspection.
The growing backlog comes at a time when police stations across the country have repeatedly raised concerns over inadequate transport capacity. The shortages, officers say, are directly affecting response times and operational efficiency. Compounding the issue further are procurement decisions around vehicle models.
According to insiders, some government departments have opted for vehicle brands with high-cost spare parts, placing additional strain on already stretched maintenance budgets.
“Some government departments vouch for makes that have very expensive parts. So some of these cars are stuck here because of the price of parts needed,” the mechanic added.
The situation highlights a broader fiscal squeeze facing government operations, where even routine maintenance has become difficult to sustain. Contacted for comment, the Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Transport and Infrastructure Pius Seone, indicated that the ministry does not have a backlog of maintenance.
“As of the 5th, the Ministry fleet availability was at 91%
“ It is the end of the Financial year, and therefore, all pending repairs will be done as soon as the new financial year starts,” Seone told Mmegi in a written response.
Seone also pointed out that the government fleet maintenance, just like other services, was affected by the current overall government financial constraints.
“All ministries budget for the maintenance of their fleet, and therefore, the expectation is that they have prepared their budgets to attend to the fleet that is off-road under their ministries,” he highlighted.
Addressing Parliament during the Committee of Supply recently, Minister Noah Salakae acknowledged the scale of funding required to manage the government fleet. “I propose a budget of P622, 382,950 or 32.3% of my Ministry’s total recurrent budget,” he said. Out of this budget, P408 Million, is for repairs.”
Seone further pointed out to Mmegi that most of the vehicles in government courtyards were auctioned last year with buyers failing to pay for them and thus will be auctioned off in April.
With vehicles piling up in CTO yards, the cost of deferred maintenance is likely to rise further, turning minor repairs into major replacements.