Welheminah Maswabi’s lawyer, Unoda Mack says government misled the public after a minister claimed the DIS agent “Butterfly” had lost her defamation case
GAZETTE REPORTER
Lawyer Unoda Mack, who represents Directorate of Intelligence and Security (DIS) agent Welheminah Maswabi, popularly known as “Butterfly,” has expressed shock and disbelief at government claims that his client has lost her defamation case against the State.
Mack said the assertion by government was false, insisting that Maswabi’s case is still alive and scheduled for hearing on March 2, 2026.
“I struggled to reconcile that statement with the truth and recent events, but all I can say is that it was a lie that Maswabi lost the case, and I was shocked to hear a minister of state saying this,” Mack said in an interview.
STATE REJECTS APOLOGY, COMPENSATION
The remarks follow a recent response by Assistant Minister of Communications and Innovation Shawn Nthaile, who was standing in for the Minister of State President, Defence and Security in Ntlo ya Dikgosi.
Responding to a question from Bangwato Paramount Chief Kgosi Ian Khama regarding Maswabi’s situation, Nthaile said government would neither apologise to nor compensate the intelligence operative.
“The government will not apologise to Butterfly,” Nthaile told the House. “First, Maswabi will not be compensated as the court did not find that the State or its institutions acted unlawfully towards her, nor did it award any damages arising from her claim.”
Nthaile further stated that Maswabi had already lost her defamation case.
“It is however important to clarify that Ms Welheminah Maswabi pursued her own defamation claim against the State and several institutions through the courts. The matter was fully heard by the High Court in Lobatse and was dismissed in its entirety, with costs,” he said.
LAWYER DISPUTES GOVERNMENT VERSION
Mack flatly rejected the minister’s account, maintaining that the matter has not been concluded.
“The case is due on March 2, 2026. It has not been dismissed, and no final determination has been made,” he said.
He added that portraying the matter as concluded misleads the public and prejudices his client.
“It is deeply troubling when senior government officials make statements that are plainly incorrect about active court proceedings,” Mack said.
BACKGROUND TO THE DISPUTE
Maswabi has been at the centre of a long-running legal and public dispute with the State following her fallout with the Directorate of Intelligence and Security, where she previously served as an agent and later got reinstated. She has alleged mistreatment, victimisation, and reputational harm, and has pursued multiple legal avenues seeking redress.
HAS THE STATE SOMERSAULTED?
After President Duma Boko elaborately narrated the torture, harassment, and hostility he attributed to the state apparatus against what he described as an innocent citizen, expectations were raised that the government was sympathetic and likely to apologise and compensate her, especially when contrasted with the conciliatory treatment extended to a co-accused foreign national, Bridget Motsepe.