Why DCEC raided The Gazette
Thalefang Charles | Friday May 8, 2015 18:00
The raid on The Gazette and subsequent arrest of three staff members and lawyer by the agents of the Directorate Corruption and Economic Crime (DCEC) was due to the newspaper’s publication of fresh cases before the state organ.
The DCEC agents raided the newspaper on Tuesday, and the lawyers’ intervention stopped them from entering to apply a search and seize warrant.
But yesterday morning, the newspaper’s managing director, Rudolf Shike Olsen and journalists, Lawrence Seretse and Innocent Selatlhwa were taken in at the DCEC offices and the newspaper lawyer Joao Salbany was detained at the Mogoditshane police cells.
Mmegi has learnt from inside sources that The Gazette articles that were reported last week and this week could have compromised the DCEC investigations, as the organisation was still in the initial stages of investigations.
The newspaper broke stories about a Zambian national, Jerry Chitube who was deported early this year after alleged corrupt deals with some senior ruling Botswana Democratic Party (BDP) members.
“The matter in fact is a fresh matter that the DCEC is investigating. DCEC is worried because the Chitube article alerted some corrupt characters that we are still investigating. It has also exposed the potential witnesses which could now be intimidated by the corrupt fellows we are after,” said the source.
“We are investigating and dealing with very smart and sophisticated individuals. Once something like this is made public they may interfere with potential witnesses and kill our case,” the source who spoke on condition of anonymity said.
“We are only worried that the author of the article may have more information that he may publish on their following issues. This is a big matter in which millions were swindled off government and of tax payers money,” he said. Seretse, the newspaper acting editor, who was arrested together with his publisher, Olsen and author of the article Selatlhwa yesterday morning told Mmegi that they were released at around 4pm yesterday.
Seretse said that the officers picked them just before 9am yesterday morning, and transported to the DCEC offices and placed at the interrogation room for hours.
Seretse said what was surprising is that during the process of writing the stories, the DCEC denied ever investigating the issues carried in the article. “We called them and they [DCEC] denied on record and off-record about investigating the matters raised in the article,” he said.
The DCEC public relations officer Nyaladzi Gambule said the matter is an operational matter and he could not discuss it with the media.
He, however, confirmed to Mmegi that the three journalists and the lawyer were arrested yesterday.
He said the arrests were regarding a story the newspaper had published.
“We arrested three journalists this morning (Thursday) in relation to a story their newspaper had published purporting that the DCEC was or is investigating one Jerry Chitube,” Gambule said.
Gambule also confirmed that the men had since been released.
“They have been released, but we will call them again if need be,” he said.
The raid
After their first attempt to raid the newspaper on Wednesday, the DCEC sealed The Gazette newspaper building at night barring anyone to access the building.
The DCEC officers arrived on Wednesday afternoon with a search warrant from Broadhurst Magistrate Court.
The letter dated May 6 2015 reads; “Information having this day being laid before me on oath under section 13/1 of the corruption and economic crime act 1994.
“And whereas I am satisfied that they are reasonable grounds for suspecting that evidence of the commission of any of the offences referred to in the Part V of the Corruption and Economic Crime Act- 1994 maybe contained at plot 125/ Sedimosa House- Millennium Park, and any material that would be relevant for purpose of our enquiries being the computer and documents used in publishing the article in question.
“I hereby direct officers of the DCEC, to enter and search such premises or place and seize and detain anything which the authorised officers have reason to believe to be or to contain evidence of any of the offences referred to in Part IV of the corruption and Economic Crime Act, 1994.”
The newspaper lawyer Joao Salbany interjected the warrant saying it could not be enforced because it was not specific enough. This led to a stand off between the lawyers and security agents.
The Wednesday raid standoff ended with the author of the article Innocent Selathwa slapped with a surprise arrest warrant by the security agents that read, “There are reasonable grounds of suspicion against Innocent Selatlhwa/Botswana Gazette that on May 5, 2015 committed the crime of publishing the article against the provision of the CECA Section 44”.
The DCEC officers however agreed to let the journalist go “sleep at home” with instructions that he must report to the DCEC offices in the morning.
The stand off took a dramatic turn on Thursday morning when the DCEC arrested three journalists and detained their lawyer.
Seretse narrated; “They took the three of us, myself, Olsen and Selathwa to the interrogation room for about two hours.
Our lawyer, Salbany later came to inform us that he was now being arrested.
He told us that the officers had told him he was being impossible and that they are arresting him.
They then left with him but we were not told where they taking him”.
Seretse added that the officers then tried to negotiate with them but they turned them down on account that they could not do so without their lawyer who was now under police custody.
“Their case was a stalemate from the very beginning, they couldn’t execute their warrant because it did not have any legal ground. They then said that if we give them the computer they will release our lawyer,” said the editor.
Lawyer arrested
Joao Salbany had to call his own lawyer after he was arrested and detained at the Mogoditshane Police cells.He was nabbed for allegedly interfering with the interrogations. According to Seretse the officers decided to arrest Salbany because he was telling the officers that the charges that were made against the journalist were erroneous.
He was then whisked from the offices to a holding cell of Sir Seretse Khama International Airport Police station then transferred to Mogoditshane Police for over two hours.
When the Mmegi team arrived at the Mogoditshane Police station, Salbany was locked behind bars and his lawyers were denied seeing him nor told about his charge. The station commander at the police station Nkwebi Chilisa said that he had received a directive not to let anyone see him before he could be cleared with the DCEC.
He said that he was not aware of the reasons why the lawyer was detained in his station but was only asked to host him.
“We work for the same government. We were asked that we assist our sister law enforcement agency, we will not allow anyone to see him unless we are told to do so,” said Chilisa who added that the officers just came and asked his office to help them detain the lawyer citing that they (DCEC officers) will come back for him.
Chilisa further said that the DCEC instructed them not to allow anyone to see Salbany as investigations were still underway.
He was released after the arrival of his lawyer, Leader of Opposition in Parliament Duma Boko, who met with the station commander behind closed doors.
The Law Society of Botswana immediately released a statement on the arrest of Salbany citing their displeasure with the DCEC’s decision.
The society through its executive secretary Tebogo Moipolai said the arrest runs afoul of enshrined constitutional rights of The Gazette newspaper and the journalists to legal representation as well as to adequately prepare a defence and similarly an affront to the attorney’s Constitutional rights to protect the rights of his clients.
“Information received as at now is that Mr Salbany was since yesterday engaged with officers of the Directorate on Corruption and Economic Crime (DCEC) in defence of his clients The Gazette newspaper.
His engagement was apparently in relation to an attempt by the DCEC to effect an arrest of a journalist for the newspaper as well as to take possession of certain property including IT equipment,” the statement read.
LSB condemns arrest and detention of attorney Joao Salbany
The Law Society of Botswana has learnt with shock and trepidation of the arrest of Attorney Joao Salbany of the Law firm Bayford and Associates this morning.
Information received as at now is that Salbarny was since yesterday engaged with officers of the Directorate on Corruption and Economic Crime (DCEC) in defence of his clients the Gazette newspaper.
His engagement was apparently in relation to an attempt by the DCEC to effect an arrest of a journalist for the newspaper as well as to take possession of certain property including IT equipment.
It is as part of this on-going legal engagement that the attorney was arrested and is detained at a Botswana police station ostensibly on a charge of obstructing the officers in their investigations. Since his arrest he has been denied access to his legal representatives.
In the absence of some compelling reason(s), the arrest of an attorney during the discharge of his duties is an affront to the constitution and the very basic tenets of democracy and the rule of law.
The arrest runs afoul of enshrined constitutional rights of the Gazette newspaper and the journalist to legal representation and to adequately prepare a defence and similarly an affront to the attorney’s constitutional rights to protect the rights of his clients.
The arrest brings once again into sharp focus the culture of impunity that the society alluded to at the Opening of the Legal Year in 2015. It further brings into question the country’s so oft spoken credentials on the rule of law.
The Law Society is keenly watching this matter and in this regard will if necessary engage an attorney to protect the interests of its member and indeed those of the legal profession as a whole.
The statement is issued pursuant to resolution of council of the Law Society of Botswana dated 7th May 2015.
*Tebogo P Moipolai Executive Secretary
The Law Society of Botswana