Police Fight Losing Battle With Drugs
Pini Bothoko | Monday June 24, 2019 12:23
Marijuana use continues to rise according to police reports informed by raids some of which were made public through different media platforms as a way of sending a clear message to potential dealers.
Despite having made somewhat of a spectacle of themselves on live television their message seems to be falling upon deaf ears, as police continue to arrest druggies and confiscate large quantity of drugs.
Recently two men, Kgari Cosmos Maretele, 49, of Goo-Moeng ward in Ramotswa and Justice Rantsheno, 54, of Sebina ward in Serowe, were arrested at the village’s border post for possession of dagga.
When they were arrested the duo had in their possession six 25kg bags full of marijuana in a Honda CRV that they were driving. They were arrested after crossing the border into Botswana from South African with the bags of dagga.
Then, the police suspected the duo might have been receiving the bags from others or someone from the other side of the border. The Botswana Police Service’s (BPS) director of crime intelligence, Nunu Lesetedi then said the dagga smugglers specialise in transporting and illegally crossing dagga into the Botswana side.
“Our investigations have established that some Batswana who deal in drugs have connections with South Africans or people from that side who transport drugs to the border for them,” Lesetedi revealed.
He said they have learnt that there is a cartel selling drugs and benefitting from them and have been having sleepless nights to fight this surge.
However, despite their best efforts with raids and arrests syndicates continue to smuggle drugs, especially dagga, into the country.
“This shows that there is demand and supply and drug markets still exist. Despite our efforts to reduce drug consumption in Botswana, we have realised that the country continues to be the target by international drug barons,” Lesetedi said.
“We have been arresting drug mules and continue to confiscate large quantities of drugs. This is a serious concern, even though I do not have statistics with me, but when I recall in the last quarter, from January to June this year they have recorded 46 cases.”
He stated that South African drug barons are currently controlling the country’s drug market as they are the ones who illegally cross the border into the country with the drugs.
He said the drugs come into the country mostly from eSwatini, South Africa and through other foreign drug peddlers. He said foreigners are working together with the locals who are the distributors and consumers.
“We have established that a majority of Batswana have been surviving from the sale of drugs something that appears to be difficult to desist from. We will not despair, we will continue to intensify our patrols hopefully we will one day curb this surge,” Lesetedi said.
He said through their intelligence they discovered that a majority of people, especially the youth have been violent, intruding on other people’s homes day and night without fear, assaulting and robbing them.