27 Nov 2019

Chairperson of Guides Association (BOGA), Mr Kenson Kgage has underscored the need for members of the association to adhere to the memorandum of operation and conduct themselves in a manner that would maintain the good reputation of the association.

Speaking in an interview following a special meeting held to discuss some issues of concern in the memorandum of operation such as litter at the campsites, cancellation policy and provisional booking amongst others.

He explained that as the executive committee, they had received complaints from some members with regard to the above mentioned issues.

The special meeting, he said aimed to discuss the issues and come up with permanent solutions that would benefit all.

He said some members were not pleased with the booking system as some small business operators complained that some well established businesses were denying them the opportunity to benefit from the system.

Small operators, he said decried lack of business as established business operators used their financial muscle to block them knowing that they did not have clients and when the booking period ended, they cancelled the bookings.

They also argued that they spent sleepless nights at the office because of limited space as they were only allowed to book five campsites in different locations.

He revealed that the office had categorised the booking system whereby members book through BOGA office in advance either for six months or twelve months.

If the space is available, operators would be issued with a voucher which would be presented to the department of Wildlife and National Parks (DWNP) and pay the required government campsite fees amount and park entry fees.

As per the memorandum of operation, the association maintains a database of its campsites and availability and all the booking requests are made in person at the office between the hours of 8am-1pm and 2pm-5pm.

Mr Kgage explained that cancellations which were more than 40 days before the start of the booking were refunded 75 per cent of the total due, while cancellations less than 30 days were non refundable.

The memorandum of operation, states that during cancellation, there will be a P100 per night penalty imposed and that no company or individual will be permitted to book any BOGA campsite until all penalties have been paid. He revealed that some small businesses argued that well established companies mostly booked for twelve months, looked for clients and if they failed to find them, they cancelled the booking.

He said they argued that operators should be allowed to book only if they had clients not to deny those who had already find clients to book.

He said they called for review of the booking system saying they could not compete with well-established operators.

On the issues of litter at campsites, Mr Kgage explained that they had observed that some operators were not adhering to the memorandum of operation as far as cleanliness of the environment was concerned. He pointed out that BOGA had been allowed to use government sites in the Okavango Delta and all national parks but it was worrisome as some were failing to keep the areas clean as expected.

He said the office had hired an officer to monitor all the campsites and ensure operators complied with the set rules and regulations by DWNP.

It has been stated in the memorandum of operation that there shall be a fine imposed on the culprit. The first offence shall incur a fine of P1 000 while the second offence shall incur a fine of P2000 plus a six months ban from using the BOGA campsites.

Mr Kgage said they wanted members to review the set charges as some operators continued to litter campsites. ENDS