Thabo Malambane, who was dismissed in 2014 by Khama’s administration, had won his case at the Industrial Court and was awarded costs running into millions of pula despite the State’s contention that the court had no right to do so, as the case was not an employer/employee trade dispute. According to the court, it has been established that Malambane was not an employee as per the Public Service Act (PSA) since the Judiciary was an independent arm of the branch of government. Justice Isaac Lesetedi when ruling on the matter said the Industrial Court, since it was a court of law and equity, did not have any jurisdiction to deal with the matter as it was not an employee/employer issue.
Lesetedi explained that a court of law, which is the High Court, was the only one with unlimited jurisdiction to deal with all kinds of matters. “Judicial officers are not employees and should not resort to industrial action to advance their interest in their conditions of service. They can only approach the court of law for remedies for the review of the actions taken,” he said. Lesetedi pointed out that according to the Legislature, the former magistrate was not an employee within the terms of the PSA and that logically under the same legislation, the government cannot be his employer.
