05 Apr 2017

Most of the outstanding fees for appearance and other bonuses due to Botswana Athletics Association have been paid, Parliament was told.

Minister of Youth Empowerment, Sport and Culture Development, Mr Thapelo Olopeng said a total of P648 000 was paid to the association, being P112 000 for appearance fees and P536 000 for incentives for athletes and officials who represented the country at international events.

He said a total of P78 850 was paid to Botswana Athletics Association as appearance fees and bonuses for the Rio 2016 Olympics.

Mr Olopeng said ‘the only outstanding payments to Botswana Athletics Association are P10 000 for the Africa Cross Country race held in Yaounde, Cameroon in March 2016 and P12 000 for World Cross Country event held in Kampala, Uganda in March 2017.’

“It has to be noted that Athletics is not one of the sport codes that attract monthly allowances for national team athletes,” he said.

Mr Olopeng told the House that P107 000 which has been outstanding appearance fees for the senior national football team for the game played on September 30 has also since been paid.

The minister stated that financial constraints exacerbated the delays in payments and that sport codes also took long to make submissions of the officials’ results and list of beneficiaries for payments.

This was in response to a question from Specially Elected MP, Mr Mephato Reatile who wanted the ministry to state the amount government owes to the association and officials in appearance, monthly and other bonuses for having represented the country at official international events.

Mr Reatile also asked the minister to give a breakdown of outstanding amounts per sporting code, stating which bonuses, which events, how long they have been owed and why the delay. ENDS