Lawyers' resignations at AG's at all time high

ISAIAH MOREWAGAE
Staff Writer | Friday October 15, 2010 00:00

 

On Thursday last week,  Molokomme addressed an emergency staff meeting, in a bid to preempt more of what looks like an intermittent brain drain.

So far the Directorate of Public Prosecutions (DPP) has lost some of Botswana's brightest state counsels in this flight of human capital.

Only last week, one of Botswana's best lawyers, senior state counsel Kgosietsile Ngakaagae, announced his resignation from DPP. The AG's Chambers has also lost the services of Thabo Malambane to the Administration of Justice which has since posted him to Ramotswa as a magistrate.

While the AG's principal public relations officer, Abigail Hlabano, has confirmed that Dr Molokomme recently held a meeting, she said it was part of ongoing efforts to address issues of staff retention.

'Meetings between the AG and her staff are internal and are not intended for public consumption,' Hlabano said. 'But since you ask on a matter of public concern, the AG and her management team did call a meeting of all legal staff on October 7, 2010 as part of (an) ongoing effort to address issues of staff retention.' At least 39 legal practitioners have so far left the AG's DPP, the highest number of resignations in five years.Hlabano detailed figures for the 'attrition trends' over the past five years as follows: 2005 = 13, 2006 = 8, 2007 = 19, 2008 = 16, 2009 = 15, and 39 so far this year.

Hlabano expressed concern over the exponential escalation, saying this was the reason to determine what could be wrong.On the surface, she said, more attractive terms and conditions of service in the magistracy, parastatals and in the private sector appeared to be responsible.

The reality is that the government is not in a position to match the salaries and conditions of service of the private sector, she added. 'Other concerns include heavy workloads (here) at the Chambers, which is partly caused by the staff departures, and inadequate security, especially for litigating lawyers,' Hlabano explained.

'Another concern is the fact that as a result of the recession, the training budget has been frozen in the AG's and other government departments. She said the number of departing employees should also be understood in the context of a growing establishment, especially at the DPP.

Moreover, she said, the reality was that Botswana has a small population of trained professionals, like lawyers, while the law of supply and demand were clearly at work.