Public interest must prevail in P662m tender saga
Friday, October 31, 2025 | 80 Views |
It strikes at the very heart of how public funds should be managed and protected. As Justice Isaac Lesetedi rightly emphasised, public procurement cases must centre on public interest, not on who wins or loses. The Ministry’s baffling insistence on proceeding with this deeply flawed direct appointment of Emeritus Training Academy Botswana, despite clear findings of irregularities from the Public Procurement Regulatory Authority (PPRA) and court interventions, demands serious public scrutiny.
The Ministry’s use of direct procurement, a process intended only for exceptional circumstances, fails to meet the basic standards of justification required by procurement regulations.
More than P8.1 million has already been spent, yet there appears to be no lasting solution in sight. This is not simply a dispute between the DIS and a group of officers. It is a matter of public accountability. Every pula spent by government comes from taxpayers who expect public funds to be used wisely and responsibly, especially during economic hardships faced by many.The officers exercised their constitutional right to seek justice through...