Canadian miners talk tough over Minister’s stalling
The messy fallout between Canadian miners, Gchwihaba Resources and the Botswana government looks set to rumble on, with possible dire consequences for the Minister of Minerals and Energy, Lefoko Moagi.
The company, who have been searching for Iron Ore in the Okavango Delta since 2008, want Moagi jailed if he continues to ignore High Court’s order to renew one of their prospecting licences.
On 15 December 2023, Justice Bugalo Maripe gave govt 14 working days to renew the said licence, describing their repeated failure to do so as ‘illegal, unreasonable and irrational’.
The state is said to have considered appealing the decision but thought better of it, seemingly giving Gchwihaba the impression they would honour the order.
However, with the deadline long elapsed and government still stalling, the miners took the legal route once again, filing a contempt motion before Maun High Court on Tuesday.
Accusing Minister Moagi of undermining the court’s authority and making empty promises, the mining giant’s called for stern action.
“Imposing a period of imprisonment, such as this Court may deem appropriate on the first respondent (Minister), suspended on conditions deemed appropriate by this court,” they requested in their recent motion.
Filing a supporting affidavit, the company’s Office Administrator, Moagi Ntukununu, insisted Moagi was acting in bad faith by disregarding court.
“It represents a challenge to the authority of the court and it is an affront to the dignity of the court. It is therefore imperative for the court to immediately vindicate its authority by asserting itself,” urged Ntukununu.
In the filed documents, the Minister was given until 29 January to respond and show why he should not be held in contempt of court over his failure to comply with the judgment.
The cracks in the duo’s relationship date back to November 2021, when govt only renewed four of Gchwihaba’s five prospecting licences.
The licence in question covers a small area on the outskirts of Shakawe, with an estimated US$87 million (close to P1.2 billion) worth of high-grade iron ore buried beneath the surface.
Government designated the land a ‘buffer zone’ in 2014 – an area established to provide an additional layer of protection to the core zone.
“The core zone is the area designated as the Okavango World Heritage Property. Activities in the core zone are strictly limited,” explained James M Bruchs, a Managing Director of Gchwihab, in a previous interview with The Voice – check out the full interview online at https://thevoicebw.com/mining-giants-decry-sabotage/
Bursch also points out that such limitations do not apply to the buffer zone, noting this was readily agreed to by government when they set up the zone.
“If one reads the record, you will find that in 2013 and 2014, the State Party explicitly tells UNESCO in their application documents that mining and exploration are not prohibited in the buffer zone – plain and simple, end of story. We merely had to submit the government’s own documents to the court to prove our point,” he stated.
