Botswana’s Foreign Minister, Lamagang Kwape, has denied that an arrest warrant for former President Ian Khama, who is currently living in exile in South Africa, has been issued.
He said, “We will have to engage the ministry of justice to find out the status of any arrest warrant if any.”
In December, it was widely reported that a Botswana court had issued an arrest warrant for Mr. Khama on the charge of illegally possessing firearms.
After falling out with his successor President Mokgweetsi Masisi, the 69-year-old former leader denied the charges, claiming they were part of a political conspiracy.
Mr. Khama stepped down in 2018 after serving two five-year terms.
Foreign Minister Kwape spoke to the BBC on the sidelines of the Commonwealth foreign affairs ministers’ meeting in London, which had just ended.
He also told the BBC that the country was renegotiating diamond contracts and licenses.
He added that in order to benefit from diamonds, Botswana needed to be more involved in the value chain, particularly in the manufacturing sector.
He claims that the country has more skilled labor that can be used to extract more value from raw materials.
