This archive report was first published on 11 December 2019.
Botswana's politics have been shaken by the dramatic resignation of former President Ian Khama from the ruling Botswana Democratic Party (BDP) in May 2019, after a decade in power. The BDP has held power since 1966.
Khama, 66, has renounced his hand-picked successor Mokgweetsi Masisi and accused his former deputy of autocracy in a deepening conflict between the two men.
Just before the October 23 election won by Masisi's party, an anti-corruption official accused Khama and several close associates of embezzling 100 billion pula (8 billion euros). The allegations surfaced in an affidavit deposed in a recent high-profile court case.
Investigator Jako Hubona, with the Directorate on Corruption and Economic Crime, accused Khama, former intelligence chief Isaac Kgosi, and another senior intelligence officer, Weleminah Maswabi, of transferring some of the funds to HSBC Bank in Hong Kong and leading South African banks.
The rest of the funds was allegedly pumped into offshore accounts as well as South African bank accounts.
So far, only Maswabi has been charged and is facing three counts of financing terrorism, possession of unexplained property, and false declaration for passport. She has since been granted bail and will make a court appearance in February next year.
No charges against Khama have been filed in the court.
Addressing a media briefing on Monday, Khama denied the allegations, calling them "false and deliberately and maliciously fabricated" to tarnish his name.
"There is no doubt that the serious allegations by Hubona and his co-conspirators amount to criminal conduct and are extremely defamatory," Khama said.
"I have no offshore accounts and have maintained none during my Presidency," he said. "Neither have I ever received any money from any unlawfully created Bank of Botswana account, or offshore account, or any other account."
"There is no doubt that the serious allegations by Hubona and his co-conspirators amount to criminal conduct and are extremely defamatory," Khama said.
