20 May 2025

Members of the Parliamentary Public Accounts Committee (PAC) have expressed displeasure at the incentives and fringe benefits enjoyed by the government executive management, among them permanent secretaries and directors of departments.

A member of the committee, also Member of Parliament for Thamaga-Kumakwane, Mr Palelo Motaosane, expressed displeasure with the 15 percent commuted overtime allowance at the ongoing PAC session in Gaborone on Monday.

 Mr Motaosane said the allowance was secretly stated as it was not discussed and passed by the 12th Parliament for approval.

 He said such officers had responsibility allowances as a package that covered responsibilities carried out beyond normal working hours.

 He said most of the time, officers were forced to take time off duty or overtime payments delayed which was not done with the executive management who had been working overtime indicating that the executives favoured themselves. Chairperson of the Committee, Mr Taolo Lucas, said all other cadres were left to take the government to court rather than rectify anomalies prior to law suites.

 Mr Lucas said the executive management favoured themselves with the 15 per cent and increased the margin against lower cadres.

 “In all other cadres, what happens is that you let them take matters to court and that would only be when you pay up. But, where you are affected, you pay up before going to courts. Does it really make sense? So you get 15 per cent and let them take the long winding route and only pay on court order. Why? I put it to you that with 15 per cent executive management favoured themselves,” Mr Lucas said.

 In response, the Director of Public Service Management, Ms Gaone Macholo, said they had to give executive management at scale E2 and above the 15 per cent overtime allowance when they realized that some of them were eligible to claim overtime.

 Ms Macholo said those who claimed overtime worked long hours without compensation and it was realized that the overtime disparities led to inequity that could lead to legal suites.

 She said they realised in case of suits, they had to calculate individual overtime and found it reasonable to settle for 15 per cent commutted overtime to avert disparities. She said the loss of such a matter before the courts would affect government coffers as overtime claimed could be much more than the basic salaries of the said officers.

 She said there were many government departments that got commutted overtime without court interventions and those who had to negotiate for “hour to hour” overtime pay.

 Ms Macholo said most of the government departments opted out of commutted overtime as the money was little and chose “hour to hour” as a solution to curb unnecessary costs.

 She said the 15 per cent was not back paid but made following a study that was carried out which meant that it was not predisposed by the working conditions as the issue had also been pending over a long period of time.

 She said taking time off duty had failed to be resolve the problem as some officers could accumulate as much as 40 days off which they realized would be costly as it would be equivalent to overtime pay. ENDS