BURS fails to defend in Kgosi’s P50m suit

  • Court instructs BURS to giveup ever responding
  • Rules in favour of Kgosi
  • Kgosi’s P50m claim to be assessed

TEFO PHEAGE

The Botswana Unified Revenue Services’ (BURS) failure to respond to the former head of the Directorate of Intelligence Service (DIS) Isaac Kgosi’s P50 million suit for damages may cost the taxpayer a whopping P50 million.

BURS has failed to file and deliver its plea in the case in which Botswana’s former top spy is suing the taxman for irregular and unlawful arrest in 2019, among other things.

“Having failed to file and deliver their plea and now having been barred to do so, judgment is entered in favour of the plaintiff with costs,” Justice Zein Kebonang ruled on Monday. “The damages claim of P50 million being an unliquidated amount is to be assessed on the 2nd of August 20201 at 0830 hours.”

Although the order is a victory to Kgosi, he still has to prove his claim of P50 million. It is not yet known whether BURS filed in capitulation or not. However, court rules allow it to ask to be allowed to file its plea out of time, a request which will be judged as an isolated case regarding the validity of the reasons advanced.

Should BURS succeed in that regard, the matter will then proceed to merits.