02 Aug 2017

Selebi Phikwe West MP, Mr Dithapelo Keorapetse has presented a bill imploring government to amend the Police Act with a view to addressing some of its shortcomings.

Presenting the bill in Parliament on Tuesday, MP Keorapetse said one of the shortcomings of the act was its tendency to punish officers on interdiction before they could be convicted.

He said when police officers were suspended either because they were facing internal disciplinary proceedings or criminal charges in the civil courts of law, the commissioner of police could withdraw a portion of their earnings during the period of suspension or indictment.

Mr Keorapetse said Section 13 (2) of the Police Act provided for an officer under suspension to have a portion of his salary withheld.

 He said if the proceedings against the officer did not result in his dismissal or other punishment, the concerned officer would according to the same section be entitled to full amount of pay they would have received had they not been suspended.

The MP said the bill sought to bring uniformity in the conditions of service for police officers under interdiction with those of other government employees undergoing disciplinary procedures or facing criminal charges who remained on full pay until the completion of their cases.

“In terms of the Public Service Act of 2008, which took effect in 2010, civil servants who are indicted are paid full salary and not a portion of their emoluments,” he said.

He explained that Section 35 (3) specifically provided that an employee’ salary shall not be withheld during the period of his or her suspension, adding that while the benefit was conferred on civil servants, members of the Botswana Police Service were left out by not accordingly amending the laws regulating their employment.

Mr Keorapetse said withholding a portion of the earnings of a police officer who was facing either internal or external charges was not in line with the notion of presumption of innocence until proven guilty.

He said paying officers a portion of their salary before a guilty verdict was reached was in itself punishment and was unreasonable.

“Punishment by way of loss of income or anything should come as a result of a finding of guilt by a competent civil court of law or a legally constituted committee,” he stated.

He proposed that the act be amended to provide for an officer under interdiction to continue to receive full pay and benefits. ENDS