DIS Doing Something Good After All

| Monday May 27, 2013 00:00

It is indeed reassuring to learn from the DIS presentations that their mandate also covers surveillance on economic threats as well as snooping of unscrupulous potential investors.

To learn that the DIS were the first on the ball regarding the unreliability of the company that was hired to construct the P11 billion Morupule B power station is interesting indeed. But to also learn that when the Ministry of Minerals, Energy and Water Resources or the Botswana Power Corporation (BPC) were informed of the dangers posed by the contractor even before he started work but chose to dismiss or ignore the advice of the DIS is shocking.

We wonder how many times, besides the Morupule B power station incident, the DIS has offered free advice on the dangers posed by certain contractors only to be snubbed.We do not want to think that the DIS was trying to play good boy or playing to the gallery. Rather this revelation should be seen more as a cry for help, a cry for support. The DIS may be alone in the fight against economic threats and if so; offering advice that is never taken on-board by government departments, parastatals, and Ministries, will not make us win the fight against such threats.

Which causes us to pause and ask, can the DIS continue to be inspired towards  sharing certain confidential information with relevant stakeholders, if their advice yields nothing? We are concerned that failure to take the DIS advice may even result in this organisation lacking motivation to continue with this work. Such things are not uncommon if one will be snubbed, ignored, and even called names by the government departments and parastatals they are purpotedly serving.

There is no doubt that national security  goes beyond fighting terrorism and military threats, but  borders on the economic interests of the country. Perhaps it is time to have security conscious personnel manning strategic positions so that in the event vital information is relayed, it is met with appropriate action.