HGAT seeks jail time for OKMCT board
A raging conflict between Okavango Kopano Mokoro Community Trust (OKMCT) and Honey Guide Adventure Trust (HGAT) over management of Ditshiping village has returned to Maun High Court on an urgent basis.
This time, HGAT is seeking a court order to imprison the OKMCT board, accusing them of contempt and undermining court decisions.
The matter was brought before Justice Bugalo Maripe on Wednesday morning but was postponed to a later date, 26 February, to allow for completion of filing required documents.
Outside the courtroom, HGAT leadership did not hide their frustration. Vice Chairperson Dimbo Boikago, who led the group to court, stated bluntly: “We want them locked in prison for a full 60 days so that perhaps they will learn to respect the court.”
The dispute stems from a November 2025 Special General Meeting held by OKMCT in Xharaxao village near Maun. During that meeting, Ditshiping village was “readmitted” into OKMCT following a request from a faction of village elders. While over 100 community members expressed a preference for OKMCT over HGAT, the move immediately deepened local divisions.
On the morning of that meeting, HGAT obtained an interim interdict to halt the proceedings. Despite the order, the meeting went ahead; OKMCT later claimed they were unaware of the court’s intervention at the time.
Boikago and his team argue that OKMCT has continued to defy the court even after becoming aware of the order. They cite an alleged December celebration in Ditshiping as a primary example of this defiance.
According to HGAT, OKMCT staff and resources were used to sponsor a New Year’s celebration at a private residence after the local Chief questioned the legality of the event. HGAT alleges that by delivering firewood and organizing the event under the OKMCT banner, the board acted in direct violation of the court’s restraint.
Court filings show that on December 17, 2025, the Maun High Court extended an order interdicting OKMCT from taking any “consequent acts or steps” following the disputed November meeting, pending a full review.
However, HGAT maintains that just one day later, OKMCT issued a notice inviting members to a January 2026 meeting in Ditshiping to update governance manuals. While OKMCT ultimately did not hold the meeting in Ditshiping, though it did so in other member villages, HGAT argues that the mere intent to host it proved a total disregard for judicial authority.
The OKMCT board currently includes two representatives from each of its six constituent villages; Boro, Daunara, Xaxaba, Xharaxau, Xuoxao, and Ditshiping. While the District Commissioner’s office declared Ditshiping readmitted to OKMCT in late 2024 at the kgotla meeting in question, HGAT relies on the November 2021 Lobatse High court order which effectively removed the village from OKMCT’s jurisdiction.
As the legal battle intensifies, OKMCT stands by its resolutions and freedom of association right, while Boikago and HGAT remain adamant that Trust membership is a village and not individuals and that the rule of majority has to prevail in this case.
