BOPRITA, BOPRITU ruling expected today

LEKOPANYE MOOKETSI
Correspondent | Friday June 17, 2011 00:00

BOPRITA lodged a case againt BOPRITU after the latter transformed their First National Bank account  into their own name.  According to BOPRITA, officials of BOPRITU have been withdrawing large sums of money from the account and some of the funds may have been misappropriated. 

The founders of BOPRITU are also founder members of BOPRITA. In the application, BOPRITA wants the respondents to be restrained from carrying out transactions on the FNB account. 

BOPRITA also wants the court to declare that the transfer of the bank account to BOPRITU is unlawful, improper and a nullity. The association is also praying that the court should order that the bank account be reverted to their name. Also that the court declare BOPRITA as the only party entitled to make transactions on this account. In May, Justice Isaac Lesetedi issued an interim ruling in which he ordered that the two organisations hold a meeting at the University of Botswana (UB) on June 11, which could be jointly chaired by their attorneys.

In his ruling, Lesetedi also ordered that BOPRITU should be given authorised access to the disputed bank account solely for the transactions of paying the employees' salaries and rentals for the two organisations. 

The meeting was held last Saturday at UB and was jointly chaired by BOPRITA attorney Duma Boko and Batsho Nthoi for BOPRITU. During the meeting delegates voted that BOPRITA should not be incorporated into BOPRITU. 

But BOPRITU members who attended the meeting boycotted the elections.  Meanwhile there has been war of words between the two organisations waged through the media. In a statement issued last week, BOPRITA denied that it has been dissolved.  'It was only resolved to form BOPRITU and not dissolve BOPRITA.'

'BOPRITU was registered as a union under the Trade Unions and Employee Organisations' Act, whilst BOPRITA was registered under the Societies Act.  These are two different legal independent entities.'The statement goes on to note that BOPRITU is an organisation whose intention is to steal members of the Botswana Teachers Union (BTU) and confuse members of BOPRITA.  'They have no structures in place.  No recognition agreement.  It is a shell organisation as it has no members and survives by stealing money from BOPRITA accounts.  At one point it tried to change BOPRITA account from FNB to Stanchart but, was caught and stopped in the process.  BOPRITA is pursuing a legal route for restoring its account.'

BOPRITA said the association creates welfare for its members.  'It provides the much needed service that the employer does not readily provide.  Members enjoy various schemes that improve their lives.  The association provides a consultative forum with the employer and is duly recognised for that.

Associations are synonymous with professionals thus they are consulted for their expertise in adding value to various government polices.  Our union, BTU, provides other strengths that we do not have and has always spoken for our teachers as it has what it takes for bargaining purposes.  The majority of BOPRITA members are BTU members and no one can belong  to two unions,' said BOPRITA disputing claims that its members also belong to BOPRITU.

BOPRITA said a union without members is worse than a toothless dog. 'Currently, BOPRITU does not have any membership because no one subscribes to it and cannot represent anybody.  It is like an empty calabash which makes a hell lot of noise out of blowing wind. 

This is why one of the so called BOPRITU members cowardly published that BOPRITU was not part of the public service ongoing strike.  They knew that BOPRITU is just a shell organisation which has no security.  However BOPRITU claims that all members of BOPRITA belong to it but has failed to justify this.'

BOPRITA said its members enjoy vast employee benefit schemes from the association like funeral schemes and salary advances.  BOPRITA also claimed that some of the BOPRITU members embezzled the association's funds. 

'One of the suspects was actually issued with a warrant of arrest in May 2011, when trying to run away from the Broadhurst Police. 

They were reported for failing to account for P54, 000 that was cashed by secretary general Mogotsi Motshegwe and P25,000 cashed by Kenole Thupe and Rita Moleti, treasurer and president respectively.  Other significant amounts were cashed and some of the cheques were forged.  They failed to account for the various expenditures.

To this date, they have continued to do exactly that.  Between 7th and 8th May, 2011, they spent P122,000.  In one day, Saturday May 21, 2011 they cashed the following amounts; P48,000, P10,000, P12.880, P3.404,80, and P2.600.  Other amounts of P24.803,24 and P7.2000 were cashed on May 7th and 11th 2011 respectively.'

'Upon inspection there was a lot of final information missing like receipts and invoices.  Some receipts were fictitious especially for 2010 and 2011.  There has been no audit done for 2010 and financials point to huge sums of unallocated funds, that is over P135.000 for 2010.  No evidence was produced regarding allegations of embezzlement by BOPRITA president. 

In fact, he is one character who is always strict and demands receipts for every little money used by BOPRITA members.  That is why other people in BOPRITU never liked him,' the statement claimed.