Former BCL workers fear further delays in receiving promised soft landing payments as government cites the ongoing liquidation process as an obstacle.
BONGANI MALUNGA
Former BCL Mine workers are growing increasingly frustrated over the government’s failure to give them a clear timeline for receiving their long-awaited soft landing payments, with fears mounting that they could be forced to wait even longer.
The former miners, who have been waiting for the payouts since the closure of the mine in 2016, expressed concern after Minister for State President, Defence and Security Moeti Mohwasa told them during a meeting in Selibe Phikwe last Thursday that payment can only be made once the liquidation process is completed.
The workers said the government’s lack of a definite timeframe for concluding the liquidation process has left them uncertain about when, or even how soon, they will finally receive their money.
HEIGHTENED FRUSTRATION
Their frustration is heightened by the fact that former BCL employees were initially promised that the payouts would be made 18 months after the mine’s closure. Responding to the concerns, Mohwasa said the government was keen to resolve the matter but was currently constrained by the liquidation process, which places authority over the mine’s assets and funds with the liquidator.
“The power rests with the liquidator,” Mohwasa said, adding that government was monitoring the process closely and hoped for a speedy resolution.
LEGAL CONSTRAINTS
He revealed that a government-appointed task team had recommended the release and payment of funds to former BCL workers but said government could not simply bypass the legal requirements governing liquidation. “The law cannot be changed to suit one’s grievances at our convenience,” Mohwasa maintained, stressing that government’s interest was to see the matter resolved as quickly as possible.
FAST-TRACKING EFFORTS
Reached for comment, Botswana Mine Workers Union (BMWU) president Joseph Tsimako said the union is working closely with the Ministry of Energy and Minerals to fast-track the payment of former BCL Mine workers.
The Minerals ministry is responsible for facilitating the sale of BCL assets, while the Ministry for State President, Defence and Security is handling the payments to the former workers. According to Tsimako, the key challenge remains identifying and securing the funds required to settle the workers.
He said the union has engaged the Minerals ministry, which has in turn consulted the Judicial Services to establish the source of the delay. Tsimako said the government has committed to using proceeds from the sale of BCL assets to fund the payments, but the process has been slowed by the resignation of the Master of the Court responsible for the matter.
RECRUITMENT UNDERWAY
He said the recruitment of a successor is now underway, a development he believes could unlock the next stage of the process through a second creditors meeting.
“Our position is that payments should be processed but the sticking point has been establishing where the money will be sourced from. We have held talks with the Ministry of Minerals and Energy, they also held talks with the Judicial Services to establish the hold up. The government has committed to generating income from the sale of assets from the BCL Mine in order to make the payments but the process was held up as the Master of the Court in the area has resigned. However, the recruitment process of a successor is underway. This will then enable a second creditors meeting to advance the issue,” Tsimako told this publication.