• BHC made profits- Matsheka
• BHC did not make profits- Kgafela
From a distance, one would not believe when told that l Dr. Thapelo Matsheka and Mmusi Kgafela serve under the same cabinet. The only logical reason would be that the cabinet never holds meetings to brief each other.
This was revealed today in Parliament when the Minister of Housing and Infrastructure Mmusi Kgafela told the national assembly that Botswana Housing Corporation (BHC) did not make profits in 2020. This is despite the fact that the Minister of Finance and Economic Development-Dr. Thapelo Matsheka told the nation that BHC is one of the two State Owned Enterprises (SOEs) that made profits. According to Matsheka, BHC made profits of close to fifty million pula (P50 million) in 2020. The other SOE that made profit is Botswana Communications Regulatory Authority (BOCRA) according to Matsheka.
“I still deny that BHC has made profit. It is not profit, it’s capital. But I understand, English is not our mother tongue, some words are technical for a lay man to understand.” Minister of Housing and Infrastructure- Mmusi Kgafela said before parliament today.
Meanwhile, in the 2021/2022 national budget speech the Minister of Finance and Economic Empowerment Dr. Thapelo Matsheka told the nation;
“Even though some SOEs (state owned enterprises) registered profits in the 2019/2020 Financial Year, these were in most cases lower than in the previous year, the exceptions being the Botswana Housing Corporation and the Botswana Communication Regulatory Authority… Botswana Housing Corporation recorded an increased profit of P49.3 million, compared to P16.7 million in the previous year. This is a result of increased revenue and rental income.”
With the above conflicting statements by the ministers, one wonders if Minister Kgafela imply that Minister Matsheka is having challenges with the queen’s language to the extent that he cannot differentiate between the terms profit and capital.
