Crime in the mosque

Daniel Chida
AGGRIEVED: Abubaca Basimanebotlhe Sebolao, Kabo Shuaib Raphane and Samuel Pule

Local Muslims expose drug dealing and money laundering at the Mosque

Local members of the Islamic community have accused some of their leaders of using the Mosque as a hub for their drug business and money laundering.

Speaking during an exclusive interview with this publication, three representatives of the concerned local Muslims, Abubaca Basimanebotlhe Sebolao, Kabo Shuaib Raphane and Samuel Pule said that there is a cartel within the Muslim community that has turned their place of worship into a money laundering and drug smuggling channel.

The three said that the drug scheme has been ongoing for sometime with members turning a blind eye to it because they fear victimisation.

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The three Muslims further claimed that Batswana Muslims have been kept as beggars while foreigners are assisted in establishing shops around. “There are funds that we get from donors meant to help members to start proper businesses but Batswana are sidelined such that they never benefit from such funds. There is something called Zakatic, a Muslim practice whereby you have to help someone so that he/she does not keep coming back to beg for more but it is never implemented when it is a Motswana involved. Money is laundered in the Mosque and the leaders of the cartel pay certain people to spy on the black muslims. What they want now is to control even the government,” said Raphane

“Batswana are never given decent jobs; they get hired for menial jobs as cleaners at the Mosques. Only Batswana perform the Halaal slaughtering and get accommodated in small rooms. These are jobs that are never offered to Indians, Pakistanis and Bangladeshis,” revealed Pule.

The three said that another serious concern is of young boys who are recruited to peddle drug mafia, According to the three men, the young boys are recruited into Islam but along the way they are introduced to drugs and sent out to sell for the religious leaders.

However, the Botswana Muslim Association Secretary, Bobat Nadim refused to field questions sent to him but instead asked to be furnished with a full minutes of a meeting that was once held by the aggrieved members.

“We will not meet without those minutes,” he responded in . Last year an Imam or prayer leader at the Mahalapye Mosque, Zaid Patham skipped the country after his attempted sodomy episode was exposed by his Arabic student.

Crime in the mosque
FACING ALLEGATIONS: Botswana Muslim Association
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