Sp. Constables sense sinister motives for non-selection to Otse
Ookeditse Malesela | Friday February 8, 2019 12:57
The duo, who requested anonymity for fear of victimisation, told Mmegi that they applied last November but were left disappointed in January following the release of a list of enrolled special constables.
Mercy* told this publication that she has worked for over five years at the police station and has a tertiary certificate that automatically renders her qualified.
“I have a feeling the applications for Tlokweng Police Station either did not reach the police college or they were intentionally put aside. After learning from the released list that we were not selected, we took our concerns with the Station Commander, but we never got answers from him as the officials from the police college kept playing hide and seek. We have more than five years working here and now we just learnt that constables having served in the police service for only three months,” she said.
“Usually, Botswana Police College enrols special constables under the age of 35 years. My primary concern is that I am two years away from reaching the age limit, and that will exempt me from enrolling as they are strict on age. The same police college previously dismissed tattooed constables and reinstated them with immediate effect after engaging lawyers. This shows that there are sinister motives at play here.”
The second anonymous source, Theresa* told this publication that a majority of the special constables hired in August and having applied three months later have been called for an interview which they are currently awaiting the response for.
The aggrieved source said they were demoralised and disappointed with the College which has shattered their dreams of becoming fully-fledged police officers.
“We were told that only constables with English subject credit on their Botswana General Certificate of Secondary Education (BGCSE) certificates should apply to college, but to our surprise even those who acquired below credit (D) have already gone for the interview. I also have full five years working as a special constable in the police service,” she said.
When reached for comment, the police spokesperson Dipheko Motube said they were still in the process of hiring, hence special constables should not complain of who is called for interview or not, and are allowed to do so after completion of hiring.
Motube also refused to comment on the issue of BGCSE English subject credit, citing that it is confidential as is with the whole criteria used.
“I cannot disclose the criteria that we use when hiring our employees but it is a lot of process; we look into many things before we can accept one into college,” Motube said.