Tensions threaten country’s economic prosperity
Anticipating and pre-empting security risks, mitigating their impact or probability of occurrence, is a rational strategic endeavour.
It has since emerged that while the dust was about to settle in the territorial battles between government law enforcement agencies, a new storm is brewing and threatening the stability of the country in the security sector and could hurt economic recovery and growth.
The political fight between former Presidents Ian Khama and Mokgweetsi Masisi generated uncertainty and strategic anxiety in the country.
The alleged tension between Khama and the current administration under President Duma Boko is as political as it is a security conundrum, sources have revealed.
Recently, the government came under fire after former President Khama dismissed assertions by Minister for State President, Defence and Security, Moeti Mohwasa, that former presidents had submitted proposals to improve their welfare.
“I can only speak for myself and state there are absolutely no discussions taking place between the government and me on enhancing former president benefits, nor have I asked for any.
My benefits are not being cut or reduced as such, but rather attempts at denying them, quoting financial constraints,” Khama said at the time when responding to enquiries on the matter.
A senior security official at the Directorate of Intelligence and Security (DIS) has echoed “The current volatile economic, political and security environment shows that Botswana’s economic prosperity and political stability remain more fragile than frequently realised and recognised”.
Sources close to the new development argue that the resultant strategic anxiety from this conflict has the potential to disrupt Botswana’s strategic economic objectives, being the preferred destination for foreign direct investment and economic diversification.
Botswana’s economy is at a critical juncture; the mainstay of the economy, the extractive industry, is facing an uncertain future. The role of Botswana’s security sector, in particular, the intelligence community, in the political arena, remains a major cause of strategic anxiety.
Although the internal dynamics of this sector have been topical in public discourse since April 2008, the tension between Khama and Masisi has allegedly catalysed the infighting.
“The pace and intensity of antagonism in the security sector has seen deliberate politicisation of intelligence agencies and intelligence products to suit political narratives and end-goals. As such, the intelligence sector has
become a function of politics, with deliberate distortion of products to favour pre-cognitive dispositions of the polity has become a norm.'
The Botswana National Front (BNF), a key figure in the current administration, being a large participant within the Umbrella for Democratic Change (UDC) by both power and representation at both Parliament (including cabinet) and council, finds itself at the centre of the storm.
Some senior officials of the party are allegedly playing chess game within the security sector, more especially at the DIS and the Directorate on Corruption and Economic Crime.
It is alleged that the senior party members use their proximity to power and influence to use these two critical apparatus of the state to target their opponents both within the coalition and outside. This, according to sources,
has been used as leverage due to the volatile relationship between the DCEC and the DIS and, by extension, the Directorate of Public Prosecution.
“The infighting has further gone on to foster public perception that the Botswana security sector is hostage to the interests of the ruling political elites.
Central to this perception is the role of DIS and the Directorate of Corruption and Economic Crime (DCEC). The resultant has been spaghetti of roles with securocrats endearing themselves to politicians and vice versa.
The extent to which the security sector has been a variable in the political ecology of Botswana is indicative of blurry lines that exist between securocrats and politicians,” a former senior officer at the DCEC who did not want to be mentioned, added.
DCEC has maintained that it has a cordial relationship with other law enforcement agencies, including the DIS. According to the DCEC, it enjoys cooperation, respect and a working relationship with the DIS and continues to engage each other on issues of common interest.
Despite its essentially political nature, the relationship between the machinery of intelligence and the higher political echelons is difficult and uncertain.
“Intelligence must serve two masters: its political overlords and the truth. Thus, intelligence practitioners often find themselves under acute pressure to forfeit their loyalty to the truth in order to win the favour of their political
leaders. In such cases, a real danger arises - of ‘political contamination’ of the intelligence product,” sources have revealed.
It has been argued further that the growing danger is that political leaders will prefer to obtain an intelligence picture that reflects their point of view and does not necessarily reflect the professional position of the intelligence organisation.
According to security experts, political leaders tend to operate on either political or strategic considerations that do not affect the intelligence sector and are based on the assumption that they have all the required information.
It is argued that the dangers of political contact between the political decision makers and the intelligence cannot be overlooked.
This contact is said to differ from that of other government offices, due especially to the dependency relationship between the various elements, and since the national leadership may sometimes become almost a hostage to the intelligence product.
The Minister for State President, Defence and Security, Moeti Mohwasa, declined to be drawn into discussing this issue, referring this publication to the affected parties.
“I do not know what you are talking about. The only information that we have received and is pending verifications is that some bloggers and journalists are on payroll to launch a smear campaign against the government and some officials to counter the work and outcome of the Forensic Audit and corruption investigations against certain individuals,” Mohwasa, who doubles as Vice President of the BNF, said.
DIS Director General Peter Magosi and BNF Publicity Secretary Carter Joseph could not be reached for comment at press time.