Botswana Defence Force (BDF) retirees have escalated their long-running pension dispute with government, demanding permission to stage a peaceful march to President Duma Boko’s Office and threatening urgent High Court action if authorities continue to ignore their request.
In a statutory notice and letter of demand dated 4 August 2026 lawyers representing retired soldiers accused the Office of the President of failing to respond for nearly two months to a request to deliver a petition directly to the President over the controversial 1/375 Transfer Value Enhancement pension payments.
The legal notice, addressed to the Permanent Secretary to the President, the Commissioner of Police, the Attorney General and the Ministry for State President, Defence and Security gives government 24 hours to facilitate the march or face litigation. The retirees are represented by Rt Lieutenant General Gaolathe Galebotswe and others who say they have exhausted engagements with the Ministry for State President, Defence and Security without resolving their grievances. According to the letter, the group first requested on 8 June 2026 to present a petition to President Boko on 30 June but says the Office of the President has never acknowledged or acted on the request.
‘Despite the clear and formal request, and the significant period of time that has since elapsed, no response has been received from the Office of the President, no convenient date has been pronounced… and no arrangements whatsoever have been made to facilitate the receipt of the petition,’ the lawyers state.
The former soldiers argue that government’s silence amounts to a failure to uphold constitutional rights guaranteeing freedom of expression, assembly and association.
‘The proposed date of the 30th June 2026 has long passed without any engagement,’ the retirees argue through their lawyers.
They contend that the State has a constitutional obligation to facilitate not frustrate the peaceful exercise of those rights. ‘This duty includes, but is not limited to: Designating a suitable and authorised person within the Office of the President to receive the Petition; Enabling and facilitating a peaceful public procession or march for the purpose of delivering the said Petition and ensuring that the Botswana Police Service provides the necessary escort, security and protection for such peaceful procession.’
‘Our Clients and their Members are entitled, as of right under Section 13 of the Constitution of Botswana, to the protection of their freedom of assembly and association… They are further entitled under Section 12 of the Constitution to freedom of expression… and to petition the Head of State and Commander-in-Chief in respect of their legitimate grievances,’ the letter from Monthe Marumo and Co. letter reads. The lawyers are demanding that the Office of the President designate an authorised official to receive the petition, while the Botswana Police Service is being asked to issue the necessary procession permit and provide police escort for what they insist will be a peaceful march.
The lawyers further demand that the petition be received within seven days of the notice. Failure to comply, they warn, will trigger urgent court proceedings seeking declarations affirming the retirees’ constitutional rights to march and protest, together with court orders compelling the Office of the President to receive the petition and directing police to facilitate the procession.
‘The State… has a corresponding constitutional duty to facilitate, and not to hinder, the peaceful exercise of these fundamental rights,’ the notice states. The legal team says it will also seek costs against the State should the matter proceed to court. The latest development is a fresh escalation in the long-running dispute over the 1/375 Transfer Value Enhancement payments, an issue that has remained a source of discontent among retired military personnel despite months of engagement with government.