Former MP and ward secretary face-off in charges of leaked phone calls and midnight threats
Explosive allegations of abuse and a whirlwind of mudslinging politics have thrust former Maun East Member of Parliament, Kostantino Markus, and a young female political activist into a political boxing ring for Maun East.
The vicious fight for political dominance between Markus and his expected opponent in the BDP Primary elections, Reaboka Mbulawa has now landed Markus and the young activist, seemingly fighting in Mbulawa’s corner before the Maun police. This stems from a leaked recorded phone call full of slanderous accusations.
Ontuetse Ikageng, a 24-year-old Ward Secretary for Makalamabedi, claims to have been left utterly shattered by Markus’ devious tactics. According to her harrowing account, Markus showed up at her house under the cover of darkness, accompanied by a group of intimidating men. From there, they forcibly whisked her away to a party cadre’s residence, where Markus went on to issue explicit threats.
The tangled web began unraveling when Ikageng reached out to a fellow party member, Phillimon Dicheleketo, earlier in the week. She reportedly sent him a “call back” message, seeking answers regarding the party’s regional vehicle transfer from Reaboka Mbulawa. Rumours had been swirling in Makalamabedi that Mbulawa might be disqualified from contesting primary elections, and Ikageng wanted confirmation. To her surprise, Dicheleketo not only explained that the rumors were baseless but also took the liberty of secretly recording their conversation without her consent. Somehow, this recording fell into the hands of Markus.
In a shocking turn of events, Markus contacted Ikageng’s brother on Tuesday, urgently alerting him to the existence of a circulating voice note. Through his own investigation, Markus uncovered the truth—it was his sister’s voice on the recording.
Around 8PM Markus allegedly made his chilling arrival in the village. Perturbed, Ikageng’s brother delivered a grave message—she was wanted outside and must comply without question. Succumbing to fear, she climbed into a waiting vehicle, escorted by Markus and a motley crew of five women and five men, to an undisclosed location—a certain woman’s house.
Within those walls, surrounded by men she did not know, Ikageng was allegedly threatened with an arrest and detention by Security agencies if she did not retract the remarks she made in the recording. She did not retract. Instead she decided to report the former MP to the police. However when she arrived at the police station, she was shocked to find out that Markus had already gone ahead of her and reported her for slander and spreading false statements about him.
The case is still under investigations and Markus has refused to comment on the matter.