13 Jul 2015

Chief Justice Maruping Dibotelo has appointed Francistown High Court judge, Mpaphi Phumaphi to represent Botswana as one of the judges who will preside over the investigations of the death of former Lesotho army general, Maaparankoe Mahao who was shot dead recently in Lesotho.

Speaking during a dinner with Magistrate courts employees in Francistown recently, Chief Justice Dibotelo noted that the local judiciary was one of the best in the region.

Justice Dibotelo said the judiciary system is impartial and does not prejudice, adding that it always adjudicates matters fairly as it does not condone issues of race, tribe or any other factors whenever dealing with court related matters.

He noted that the rule of law prevails in the country and said the judiciary always plays a stabilising role whenever there are disputes and other issues that need the attention of the law.

Further, he stated that although some still criticise the system, some Batswana continue to show confidence on the system as they have access to courts and they always seek the intervention of them on different cases.

The Chief Justice further said the impressive record of the judiciary has attracted some neighbouring countries, adding that countries such as South Africa, Namibia and others have shown the goodwill of the system and have shown interest to come and benchmark.

Meanwhile Justice Dibotelo emphasised the need to build up other magistrate courts in Francistown, saying he would advise the government on the matter considering the fact that the current one is congested and people always struggle to locate it.

“There is a need to build other magistrate courts in Francistown, the current one serves the entire population of Francistown which continues to grow and other parts of the north, as such there is much congestion,” he said.

For his part, Francistown Chief Magistrate, Mr Gaedupe Makgato also commended the staff for their efforts pertaining to customer care.

 He said the staff has shown commitment and always work collectively to achieve their mandate.

The purpose of the dinner was to present some awards to some of the employees as well as to accord them an opportunity to interact. ENDS