Lift the veil on disclosure

Sadly, judging by the known track record, it is unlikely that the answers to these key questions will be made available, at least not to ordinary Batswana grasping for a semblance of understanding in the wake of a mind-jolting tragedy.

Authorities, be they government, parastatal or quasi-government have an ignominious and unenviable reputation for unwarranted secrecy and non-disclosure. In many cases, this secrecy has been cloaked in the veil of officialdom – the burdensome bureaucracy designed to tire out even the most spirited of enquirers. Batswana have watched this cloak of secrecy descend on national tragedies in recent years such as the drowning of WUC employees in Gaborone Dam, the BDF’s fatal crash into a Letlhakeng house, the fatal slope wall collapse at Jwaneng Mine, deaths during Morupule B’s construction and numerous others.