According to a recent communication from the Ministry of Defence and Security, payments of recalculated pension benefits commenced on August 15, 2024. However, the development comes amidst an ongoing case in which the retired soldiers aren't happy about what they are being offered. The retired soldiers are suing the government for transferring their pension to the Botswana Public Officers Pension Fund (BPOPF) without their consent. In the class action case, the former military personnel argue that it was illegal and unlawful contrary to the provisions of the BDF Act and its regulations for their pensions to have been transferred to BPOPF without their consent.
The case is scheduled for September 18 for case management following a recent deadlock from failed negotiations that were meant to settle the case out of court. On the other hand, the commencement of payment is said to have been made possible by those who opted to sign consent forms to be paid as government recently announced that it had secured P1.5 billion to be used for settlement. In a brief interview, ex-soldier and representative of ‘A re Itshekeng’, Brigadier Mabe Gaborone, confirmed that they are still going ahead with the court case despite the government announcing commencement of payments. "We saw the announcement but I can confirm that we are still going to court because our issues have not yet been resolved as you know we recently have collapsed settlement talks," he said. Gaborone explained that those being paid consented as they signed forms despite not being happy with what they were being offered.
