Botswana’s former President Ian Khama has filed an urgent court application seeking the cancellation of an arrest warrant issued against him by a magistrate last week.
Khama’s father, the late Sir Seretse Khama was Botswana’s founding president.
He quit the ruling Botswana Democratic Party in 2019 following a dispute with his successor and incumbent President Mokgweetsi Masisi.
The warrant was issued after Khama, who has been living in South Africa since November 2021, failed to appear in court to answer charges laid against him in April.
The charges include unlawful possession of a firearm, receiving stolen property and procuring the registration of a firearm by false pretense.
The former head of State has asked the high court in Gaborone for the warrant against him to be set aside or for its execution to be stayed, citing a lack of evidence for his prosecution. He said in his court filing:
The warrant of arrest threatens my right to liberty in circumstances where I have committed no crime…should this warrant of arrest not be stayed or set aside…I would suffer irreparable harm which cannot be compensated for in any form.
Khama’s lawyer said his client is still waiting to be given a date for the hearing.
Khama has missed court appearances since he was charged in April, saying he feared for his life in Botswana. | SABC News