Botswana Oil makes its weight felt
Tuesday, October 24, 2023 | 7920 Views |
To the brim: Botswana Oil is due to take control of the fuel market from next April
The policymakers behind the recent statutory notice giving Botswana Oil (BOL) the exclusive right to import 90% of the country’s fuel, were evidently not interested in half-measures, or half-stepping.
From April 1 next year under the 90% “import quota,” BOL will exclusively import nearly all of the 1.2 billion litres of fuel consumed in the country annually, and resell this to retailers such as Engen, Total, Puma, Caltex and the wholesalers.
When the State cannot rely on its own machinery to pursue suspected wrongdoing, repairing that machinery must become a national priority.The establishment of a Special Investigations and Asset Recovery Task Force may help government respond to the immediate challenge. However, Botswana cannot afford to leave the Directorate on Corruption and Economic Crime (DCEC) and the Directorate of Public Prosecutions (DPP) struggling whilst building...