06 Jul 2014

Gaborone High Court Judge, Justice Leatile Dambe will on September 5 deliver judgment in a case in which Mookodi  Seisa and others are challenging the privatisation of Township Rollers Football Club by the Club’s managing director Somerset Gobuiwang. 


The applicants (Mookodi and others) through their lawyer Tefo Sibanda, seek for a declaratory order from the court rendering null and void, the change of the society (Township Rollers FC) to a private company called Township Holdings. 


Motivating the application, Sibanda argued that Gobuiwang went ahead to change the status of the society by writing a letter to the Registrar of Society without any resolution that was taken by the club’s executive committee.


He submitted further that the applicants do not accept, as a true reflection, the purported minutes that Gobuamang allegedly relied on to write a letter to the Registrar of Society that ultimately changed the team status from society to a company.


He submitted that the decision to change the status of the company was meant to benefit a few adding that from the record, the society was to benefit 49 per cent from Township Holdings while the remaining 51 per cent was to be given to Gobuiwang.


The lawyer also complained of what he called the constitutional violation of the society which was never amended since the establishment of the club in 1973 to provide shelter to a certain businessman to help the society run professionally as the society was faced with financial constraints to run its daily affairs.


However, he explained that the business person was finally appointed as one of the directors  of Township Holdings without the amendment of the constitution.


In response, the lawyer representing Township Rollers and Gobuiwang, Kgosietsile Ngakaagae argued that the society never changed its status to become a company as alleged by the applicants. 


He submitted that the society and Township Holdings are two entities that exist side by side adding that the society is a shareholder of Township Holdings.


Ngakaagae submitted that the affairs of Township Rollers is run by the executive committee not by any individual adding that the de-registration of the society cannot be done one member but is a decision that rests with the members. 
“No one has taken the running of the affairs of Township Rollers and therefore the relief sought by the applicants is academic and should be set aside or dismissed,” he submitted. 


He said the letter allegedly written by Gobuiwang was an error and was retracted or was never effected as alleged by the applicants.
 The lawyer pleaded with the court to dismiss the application because there was absolutely nothing that suggests that the society has changed into a company and wondered what section of the constitution is said to have been violated. ENDS