Suspended BNSC manager ponders court action

MOSAH MOKGANEDI
Staff Writer | Wednesday May 1, 2013 00:00

Her lawyers went to court on Monday to compel Botswana Television (Btv) to release a video clip, which will be considered if court action is to be pursued.

The clip features BNSC chief executive officer (CEO), Percy Raditladi who allegedly uttered defamatory words about Chankuluba when interviewed about her suspension.Chankuluba's lawyers were forced to seek the court's intervention after Btv delayed releasing the clip in which their client was allegedly defamed. The case was supposed to be heard on Wednesday, but on Monday the TV station released the video clip.

Her lawyer, Joseph Akoonyatse of Akoonyatse law firm, said they would assess the video and determine if there will be need for further action.  

Chankuluba and her two subordinates were suspended in December on allegations of maladministration. The suspension was lifted at the beginning of last month, only for the Council to slap Chankulaba with a fresh suspension. A disciplinary hearing was scheduled for January 21.

However, the hearing was postponed indefinitely which meant the suspension had no time limit. It is not clear why the manager was slapped with a new suspension but it is reported that chiefs at BNSC were irked by Chankulaba's demand that they apologise for their actions against her. It is understood Chankuluba felt humiliated and wanted the BNSC to use the media, as the BNSC had done to announce her initial suspension, to apologise to her.

BNSC was reportedly riled by Chankulaba engaging a lawyer, arguing doing so took the matter outside internal structures. Raditladi refused to shed light on the matter. 'At this stage I have no comment to make regarding matters related to the concerned individual,' was all he could say.  Mmegi Sport had wanted Raditladi to explain why Chankuluba was suspended for the second time and why the council had made the issue public when it was an internal issue.