No mystery over Lesedi Motors Payment

source: Republic of Botswana TAUTONA TIMES of 8/8/2010
The Electronic Press Circular of the Office of the President
“Democracy, Development, Dignity, Discipline and Delivery”


C2) 8/8/10: No mystery over Lesedi Motors Payment

[As our original 6/8/10 response to Editor of the Sunday Standard on the matter below was not published the following was circulated as BGCIS Press Statement]:

[Start] In the interest of public clarity, Government is obliged to respond to a recent article that appeared in a local newspaper (Sunday Standard 1/8/10), under the provocative headline “Mystery over gov’t P 28 million payment to Lesedi Motors.”

There is, in fact nothing in the least bit mysterious about the payment. Contrary to what is alleged in the article, the reported P 28,016,547-00 advance payment guarantee was for a specific number of vehicles totalling 105 for the BDF. The complete breakdown of the procurement was as follows:-

• Eighty one (81) Full Length Canvas Land Rover 110 TDS
• Eight (8) ¾ Canvas Land Rover 110 TD5
• Additional Fourteen (14) Land Rover 110 TDi
• Two (2) Land Rover 110 Station Wagons

In keeping with proper practice the advance payment was, moreover, paid to a local bank and only released to Lesedi Motors as and when vehicles were delivered to the BDF. Full payment was thus released to the supplier, Lesedi Motors, upon the delivery of the 105 vehicles.

Further to the above, we are disappointed that the newspaper chose to run with its original unsubstantiated story, while claiming that Government could not respond to its enquiries.

As the article itself acknowledges, this office was only approached about the issue late Friday, that is to say when the newspaper itself was on deadline before the said article’s weekend publication. Under the circumstance there was simply not insufficient time for public servants to collect the requested information about the 2007 procurement.