MINISTER NELSON RAMAOTWANA DENIES KNOWLEDGE OF P1 MILLION FURNITURE BILL, PROMISES ACTION.

Article By: Rorisang Mogojwe

Minister of Justice and Correctional Services, Nelson Ramaotwana, has distanced himself from the P1 million furniture bill, insisting he was unaware of the expenditure until it was raised in Parliament.

In an interview with Gabz FM, Ramaotwana explained that he only learned about the Government Purchase Order (GPO) when Minister Noah Salakae brought it up during a parliamentary session yesterday.

Following the revelation, Ramaotwana immediately contacted his Permanent Secretary, instructing them to cancel the document. He stressed that he had not been consulted nor informed about the circulating price.

Ramaotwana also stated that he and his team would convene a meeting this morning to thoroughly review the matter. He assured that, if necessary, disciplinary action would be taken to address the situation appropriately. The controversy comes amid ongoing public scrutiny of ministerial allowances and expenditure. In a previous interview on Gabz Fm, Minister for State President Moeti Mohwasa announced that the government will review ministerial allowance adjustments to align with the country’s current economic situation.

Mohwasa revealed that discussions with the Standing Committee on Remuneration are ongoing to explore cost-effective public spending solutions in response to prevailing economic challenges.

He clarified that the adjustments, which are already in effect, were implemented by the previous administration in September 2024 as part of the Green Book conditions of service, which govern ministerial benefits.

Ministers housing allowances were increased from thirteen thousand five hundred Pula (P13,500) to twenty-one thousand six hundred Pula (P21,600), while the furniture allowance for the Speaker and Ministers was raised to one million three hundred & twenty-three thousand Pula (P1,323,000).