Oarabile Mosikare
27 August 2008
Francistown — Peter Ngoma will contest the weekend Francistown West Botswana Democratic Party (BDP) primary elections with the possibility of civil imprisonment hanging over his head.
The nominated councillor nearly spent 30 days in civil imprisonment for failure to service two different debts. The former Francistown mayor owes Onma Investment trading as Gwedzi Cash Loan about P16,000. In another matter, his company, JS Builders and himself owe a certain William Muchem P2,890.
In Onma Investment's application for 30 days civil imprisonment against Ngoma, the plaintiff's attorney, Odirile Itumeleng, submitted a draft order praying for suspension. But the politician was not so lucky in Muchem's civil imprisonment application.
The youthful Itumeleng prayed for an order to be made that Ngoma spend the next 30 days behind bars. "The defendant [Ngoma] should be imprisoned for 30 days until he pays P2,890," submitted Itumeleng.
Principal magistrate, Fortune Mukoma, asked Itumeleng the rationale of imprisoning Ngoma for 30 days in one matter and sparing him in the other.
"If he is in prison who is going to pay. What is the rationale to imprison him in one matter and suspend the order in the other matter?" wondered Mukoma. Itumeleng reasoned that Ngoma's company JS Builders, would be made to pay for him.
"You arrest him and he fails to pay the amount in 30 days and you say he is in default to pay in another matter," said the magistrate.
Ngoma who was not present in court escaped jail by a whisker after Mukoma suspended the order for 60 days to enable him to pay. This is not the first time Ngoma has evaded civil imprisonment.In December 2006, he nearly spent Christmas behind bars for failure to settle a debt of about P10,000.
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