The Patriot on Sunday | www.thepatriot.co.bw | August 09, 2020 News 1 Masisi suspends Reatile- PAGE 02|BDP has lost moral compass - TK - PAGE 05 WARNING: COVID-19 is still a threat www.thepatriot.co.bw AUGUST 09, 2020 | ISSUE 385 P12.00 Frustrated Prof Mosepele tenders resignation Shopping permit Task Force vs PIC rules eased • Greater Gaborone • President Masisi to meet Mosepele Saturday • Other Task Force members threaten to follow suit lockdown spell ruins • Permanent Secretaries feel sidelined • As Covid hits the Task Force households • UDC caucus demands PHILLIMON MMESO Govt offer food basket [email protected] relief arely a few weeks after the Presidential Task Force on Covid-19 raised concern • Govt allows people to B with President Mokgweetsi Masisi about carry shopping without the sabotage they are enduring at the hands of the Performance Improvement Coordination (PIC) permits Force, the Task Force’s deputy coordinator has resigned. • Gaborone BDP MPs are Highly placed sources have revealed that the resignation of Professor Mosepele Mosepele was incompetent – long coming after him and his team raised concern Dr Gobotswang that the PIC Force which is made up of Permanent Secretaries and headed by the Permanent Secretary to the President (PSP) was making their work difficult. BAKANG TIRO On Thursday, Professor Mosepele and other task [email protected] force members led by their coordinator Dr Kereng Masupu held a meeting with President Masisi to overnment on late Friday express their frustrations about the PIC Force and succumbed to pressure from the relayed their intention to step down from the Task G opposition MPs to address the Force. challenges citizens face brought by the hard The Task Force is said to have informed President lockdown imposed on greater Gaborone region. Masisi that they can’t perform their duty of fighting Umbrella for Democratic Change (UDC) MPs the pandemic with the level of interference from demanded that government distribute food technocrats who do not understand the scale of the baskets to greater Gaborone residents as they are health crises. not assisted with permits. Professor Mosepele – Acting Deputy Dean, MPs had also expressed deep dissatisfaction Research and Graduate Education in the Faculty with the stiff lockdown rules; saying it has led of Medicine – is said to have been the most vocal to tyranny by police who are charging citizens on how their work is being undermined by the trying to buy essentials without movement Permanent Secretaries. permits. Due to pressure, Vice President Dr Masupu has directed all enquiries to the Office Slumber Tsogwane on Friday announced that of the President while the Minister of Health and people would be allowed to go buy essential Wellness Dr Lemogang Kwape was said to have been services such as food in their nearby shops in a meeting when being approached for a comment. without permits. He said that permits issuance A communique from the Press Secretary to the was terrible as the online system experienced President Batlhalefi Leagajang has confirmed that technical glitches. President Masisi has received a resignation letter from Bobonong MP Taolo Lucas asked the Minister Professor Mosepele. of Local Government and Development if “His Excellency has not accepted Professor ENGAGED ON STRATEGY: Minister of Health and Wellness Dr Lemogang Kwape [R] with Professor Mosepele Mosepele there was any sustenance programme that the [PIC:PRESSPHOTO] Mosepele’s letter and he has scheduled a meeting with ministry had to assist those people affected by him tomorrow,” reads the press release. the lockdown. Taolo observed that people in the At the centre of the conflict between the two forces region were finding it difficult to access the shops is the control of procurement and the PIC force feels changed without consultation by their parent “The PIC Force felt that the Presidential Task Force Presidential Task Force did not take long to rebut to buy goods as government was failing to issue that the other force has usurped their powers. ministries; something affected the Task Force’s work. was wasting money in engaging the PR Officers Masire’s point. permits to them. “Things took a nasty turn at a meeting held at Presidential Task Force Media team but the Masupu led force insisted that they had no Covid hits War Room “There is a lot of inconvenience that the Gamononwane farm where the Presidential Task Another thorny issue that has pitted the two choice as BGCIS was taking time to deploy officers to lockdown has caused to the informal sector Meanwhile, the Task Force on Friday afternoon Force raised a concern that some of the medical bodies is the outsourcing of the Public Relations to them,” confided the source, adding that it led to some workers and businesses. If government cannot confirmed that a member of their support staff had equipment they procured through Ministry of some PR experts outside government; something within government leaking information about the offer any relief there would be a serious disaster. tested positive to Covid-19 forcing them to close their Health and Wellness has not been processed and that pitted them against Botswana Government remunerations of the officers to the media. Also, police arrest and charge people when they office and undertake contact tracing while testing all it is frustrating their efforts to fight the pandemic,” Communications Information System (BGCIS). The differences between the two forces came into make effort to buy their own food, its bad,” Taolo members. confided a source close to developments at the The BGCIS felt that they have competent officers the open during the fuel crisis as the Permanent said. “The public is assured that risk mitigation measures Government Enclave. who can do the work than the alleged handpicked Secretary in the Ministry Mineral Resources, Green Assistant Minister of Local Government are in place and the core team of the Presidential Another thorny issue was the deployment of PR practitioners, who are mostly drawn from the Technology and Energy Security Mmetla Masire Setlhabelo Modukanele admitted that the COVID 19 Task Team is continuing with its mandate officers at the Presidential Task Force who were parastatals. blamed the crisis on to the Covid-19 protocols. The of fighting the pandemic,” they said in a statement. TO PAGE 3 2 News August 09, 2020 | www.thepatriot.co.bw | The Patriot on Sunday Kgosidiile joins Inside SPEDU P230m tender war Minergy Board PHILLIMON MMESO (ITT) requires that if the bidder doesn’t submit [email protected] complete CV, it must be done within 2-5 days. “The bidder submitted that the ITT provided in tate-owned company SPEDU which is clear terms that where a tenderer fails to submit or mandated to turn around the economic submits a wrong, unsigned, expired, incomplete S prospects of Selibe-Phikwe region is embroiled documents or uncertified document it would be in a quarter of a billion Pula tender brawl which required to submit the documents in good order might see their intended mission halted. within 2-5 days of being notified to do so and that A citizen-owned company is fighting to have CVs together with consent letters from the proposed the tender for the design and building of Phase I staff were listed at item (d) as some of the documents Infrastructure in the copper mining town stopped that could be corrected after submission,” reads the until their issue is resolved. minutes. A tender for the Design and Build of Phase I The debriefing team insisted that the decision to Infrastructure in Bolelanoto and Senwelo Industrial disqualify the bidder on the basis of incomplete CVs Sites in Selibe-Phikwe is in limbo as one of the was correct. companies which bided for the project has taken the During the debriefing meeting, the parties couldn’t SoE to courts of law to interdict the project. agree on the way forward and requested a mediation The tender has been awarded to Marcian Concepts which was conducted by Lesedi Moahi of Moahi (PTY) Ltd at the tune of over P230 million, but Attorneys. The mediation failed to bear any fruits and Lempehu has approached the High Court to interdict certificate of failure to settle was issued on the 13th the execution of the project until the issues before of July 2020. The tender for the Design and Build of hand are resolved. SPEDU CEO, Dr Mokubung Mokubung Phase I Infrastructure in Bolelanoto and Senwelo Kgosidiile Through its Managing Director Mathews Lempehu, Industrial Sites was flouted in August 2019 and only the company wants the court to interdict and restrain awarded in June 2020. According to the affidavit of the MD of Lempehu curriculum vitae of their engineers. he Company is pleased to announce the SPEDU from executing the tender, pending the full The project is intended to lure investors to the Investment on the 4th of July 2020 they were Lempehu contended that they didn’t agree with appointment of Mr. Cross Kgosidiile as and final determination of the review application filed once vibrant copper mining town which is speedily informed that its bid proposal was not successful the submission of the consulting engineers NMA a Non-Executive Director to the Board by the applicant, Lempehu Investment (Pty) Ltd. turning into a ghost town. T due to the fact that they had submitted incomplete Consulting, stating that the Invitation to Tender of Minergy Limited, effective 3 August 2020. He is an experienced company executive and board member, with more than two decades of experience Masisi Debswana on Jwaneng Covid case across a range of sectors. Kgosidiile holds a Masters degree in Business Administration and a Bachelor of Commerce (Accounting) from the University of ebswana informs stakeholders and the Botswana, and is currently the Managing Director suspends public that a Coronavirus (COVID-19) of the Botswana Development Corporation.