A proposed complaints mechanism could give citizens a formal channel to report concerns over intelligence officers as Moeti Mohwasa moves to recast the DIS as accountable, apolitical and focused strictly on national security threats.
BONGANI MALUNGA
The government has announced plans to establish a formal public complaints mechanism against the Directorate of Intelligence and Security (DIS), signalling attempts in efforts to build public confidence in the controversial agency.
Addressing Ntlo Ya Dikgosi on Monday, the Minister of State President, Defence and Security Moeti Mohwasa said the government intends to create a channel through which citizens can report concerns about the conduct of intelligence officers without compromising national security operations.
“We intend to establish an appropriate mechanism through which citizens may raise complaints or concerns regarding the conduct of intelligence officers. Such a mechanism will strengthen accountability while preserving the operational integrity necessary for intelligence work,” Mohwasa revealed.
DRIFTED BEYOND ITS MANDATE
The announcement comes against the backdrop of years of criticism and allegations that the DIS had drifted beyond its intelligence mandate and into political territory under previous administrations. While many of the allegations were never tested in court or formally proven, they became a recurring feature of Botswana’s public discourse and opposition politics.
Mohwasa acknowledged those concerns and emphasised that the current administration intends to redefine the institution’s relationship with citizens. “We have made it clear that the DIS must concern itself with genuine threats to national security and not the lawful political activities of citizens,” Mohwasa told Ntlo Ya Dikgosi on Monday.
He stated that the DIS is a national security institution and not a political institution. In the past regime there were allegations that government used the security organ to fight political wars and intimidate citizens. Mohwasa maintains that the current government wants the DIS to be feared by criminals, spies and those who threaten national security but trusted by law-abiding citizens.
PUBLIC CONTROVERSY
Over the years, the DIS has repeatedly found itself at the centre of public controversy. Critics accused the agency of surveillance, intimidation and operating with limited oversight, claims the institution consistently rejected. Academic research published in 2025 by Kebapetse Lotshwao (Journal of Policing, Intelligence and Counter Tourism), argued that the agency’s broad mandate and limited accountability structures contributed to public perceptions of coercion and political influence.
More recently, internal legal disputes involving suspended intelligence officers alleging unlawful arrest and detention reignited debate around accountability mechanisms within the agency. If implemented, the complaints mechanism could become one of the most significant institutional reforms to the intelligence sector since the DIS was established in 2008.