CORRUPTION STORM BDP President charged with seven others over P5 million CEDA fraud
When the Directorate on Corruption and Economic Crime (DCEC) announced that Mpho Balopi and seven others would appear before the Gaborone Regional Magistrate’s Court on corruption charges involving over P5 million, the news struck at the heart of the Botswana Democratic Party (BDP), whose president once stood before cheering crowds to declare that “Domkrag was never established gore e tle go godisa, le go otla magodu le batho ba ba senyang. It’s a political party that was established gore e tle go chencha matshelo a Batswana.”
Balopi’s own words, captured in a viral clip from a Palapye BDP meeting, now echo with irony as he added that BDP members charged with corruption were not sent by the party to engage in such acts.
“Baa bo ba sa romiwa ke Domkrag batho ba ba dirileng jalo, fa e le gore ba teng.
Nna I have been quiet, hee Balopi o sentse hee Balopi baa kiolota, e bile go bue le lona maDomkrag; ba bua dikgang tse di gakgamatsang. Ba ne baa go tsaya kwa dikoloto tse e seng tsa boammaaruri hee Balopi o dirile jaana. I have been quiet. The chickens have come home to roost. The report is out; a e tswe e nne public. I can assure you as your president, you won’t find me there,” he said at the time.
On another note, he told his party members: “Forensic audit e ka phatlaladiwa ra bona bape ba gotweng ba sentse, re le phathi ya BDP ga re dumalane le tshenyetso sechaba. Fa ele gore go na le mo Domkraga yoo tla hitlhelwang re tlaa mo seegela ha thoko.”
At the time, Balopi was emphatic that the BDP would never shield corruption, and any member found wanting would be asked to step aside. He assured supporters that his name would never appear among those accused. “The chickens have come home to roost,” he said then, referring to others. Today, those same words seem to circle back to him.
BDP insiders had long whispered that Balopi’s fallout with former president Mokgweetsi Masisi was less about ideology or intra-party politics but more about the DCEC’s quiet investigations at the time. Masisi, sources claim, then urged Balopi to resign from Cabinet to protect the party before the allegations surfaced publicly. The episode was later framed as “political differences,” and the corruption talk buried under party diplomacy.
Now, with the DCEC’s charges public, the question looms: Will Balopi live up to his own standard? Will he resign as BDP president to clear his name just as he once demanded of others?
The DCEC insists its investigations are impartial and aimed at strengthening accountability. But for Balopi, the test is personal. His credibility as a leader who preached integrity is on trial as much as the charges themselves.
If he steps aside, he reinforces his earlier message that Domkrag does not protect magodu. If he does not, he risks turning his own words into political theatre, a performance that may haunt the party’s moral standing for years to come.
In its official press release this Friday, the Directorate on Corruption and Economic Crime (DCEC) confirmed that Native Outdoor (Pty) Ltd, Native Impressions (Pty) Ltd, Stess Engineering (Pty) Ltd, Keysource (Pty) Ltd, and individuals Mpho Balopi, Thomas Sidney Sharpe, Tshepiso Innocent Makgoeng, and Duncan Mothusi Gaolebogwe have been charged with corruption‑related offences involving P5 million.
The accused face:
Two counts of Fraud under Section 342A of the Penal Code (Cap. 08:01); one count of Attempt to Obtain by False Pretences under Section 389 read with Section 308 of the Penal Code (Cap. 08:01) and four counts of Money Laundering under Section 47 (1)(b) of the Proceeds and Instruments of Crime Act (Cap. 08:03).
Investigations allege that in February 2023, the accused defrauded the Citizen Entrepreneurial Development Agency (CEDA) for a project‑specific loan that was paid but never implemented. In December 2023, some of the accused allegedly attempted another fraudulent claim of P1.39 million, submitting falsified documents as proof of payment for services never rendered. The DCEC further alleges that the accused engaged in financial transactions to conceal or transfer illicit proceeds derived from the CEDA fraud.
All eight will appear before His Worship Mareledi Dipate at the Gaborone Regional Magistrate’s Court on 16 September 2026.The statement concludes: “The DCEC remains committed to conducting investigations impartially, and strengthening accountability and good governance.”
