Judge Leburu throws out PS' decision
High Court Judge Michael Leburu has set aside a decision by Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Land Management, Water and Sanitation Services to dismiss a Kweneng Land board officer from work.
Letsweletse Keoraletse was on the 4th of June 2021 dismissed from his employment as Principal Technical Officer over allegations of maladministration.
On the 20th of March 2020, Keoraletse was suspended from work, pending a probe into allegations of maladministration levelled against him.
He was accused of using inside information to acquire tribal land and then benefiting from compensation awarded to owners of such acquired tribal land. He was further accused of failing to declare his interest.
Keoraletse had argued that the decision to dismiss him was unlawful, unreasonable, procedurally flawed and irrational. He argued that there was no law that prohibited Land Board employees from acquiring tribal land from willing sellers.
According to Keoraletse, the compensation model that the Kweneng Land Board used to compensate land owners whose land was acquired by the land board, was not confidential nor privileged, but was in the public domain.
The ministry had argued that Keoraletse was fairly dismissed from the public service after he was found guilty on the two counts. This came after an internal audit was done which revealed that Keoraletse had no ploughing field in March 2019.
In his judgement Justice Leburu stated that it is the Applicant’s casus belli or point of contention that the chairperson of the disciplinary hearing panel was not a government employee.
He said the law on judicial review is trite. He stated that is not in dispute that the chairperson of the disciplinary committee was not a member of staff.
“In my judgment, there was clearly non-compliance with the procedural dictates of the circular of April 11 2011. The respondents have submitted that the Applicant submitted to the jurisdiction of the said chairperson and
therefore he is estopped from challenging the process.
“Secondly it was submitted that the Applicant waived his right to attack the composition of the panel through a settlement certificate,” the judge found.
Justice Leburu explained that as a review court, the court is enjoined, inter alia, to assess processes that were followed. Procedural irregularity, it is trite, is a ground for judicial review and the Applicant’s case is founded, amongst others on procedural irregularity, he said.
On the waiver of the right to challenge the composition of the panel, through a signed certificate between the union and the ministry, the judge found that the Applicant has submitted that he is not a member of Botswana Landboard, Local Authorities and Health Workers Union and therefore he is not bound by the certificate between the union and the ministry.
“The assertion of non-membership to the said union has not been disproved by the respondents. On that basis, I embrace the applicant’s submission that he has not waived his right to challenge the composition of the disciplinary hearing panel.
“The applicant has ably demonstrated and proved the procedural impropriety with respect to the process or hearing,” Justice Leburu said and ordered that Keoraletse be reinstated to his position with full benefits, forthwith, including payment of arrears from the date of dismissal.