Magosi has reached a dead- end
Contrary to popular belief, intelligence is not a profession, it is a lifestyle. And it is surely a peculiar lifestyle. It is therefore, not surprising that espionage and prostitution are known as the oldest ‘ lifestyles’ in the history of mankind. These lifestyles are not only the oldest they are also the most controversial.
Further, contrary to popular belief, intelligence is not doing extraordinary things to get ordinary results. It is doing ordinary things to get extraordinary results.
I stand corrected, but I thought engaging AfriForum ( right- wing Afrikaner nationalist organisation) in the Welheminah ‘ Butterfly’ Maswabi’s case was extraordinary enough. But going even further to appoint Advocate Gerrie Nel and Advocate Phyllis Vorster to represent the state in the matter is just absurd. With all due respect, I do not think Adv. Nel has any magic wand in his hand to make material evidence of a case suddenly appear from nowhere.
Brigadier Magosi should know that, he who alleges carries the burden of proof, period. I guess even President Masisi has been waiting in vain for anything sensible coming out his chief spy. I mean, Bank of Botswana ( the national treasury) have come out to categorically reject Magosi’s allegations, why does he not first prove them wrong before rushing to bring in AfriForum. The way I see it, Magosi has reached a dead- end.
Just like DCEC, I am of the view that there is nothing substantial there besides peddling ego and malice. Magosi should just stop this circus show, it has embarrassed the country and the President enough.
As for engaging Adv. Nel, it is just an indirect donation to AfriForum. In the middle of this political pandemonium, we then jet to President Cyril Ramaphosa to lobby support for Elias Magosi’s SADC Executive Secretary candidacy, is this not shameful?
Pardon me compatriots, I am not saying Maswabi and company may have not looted, I am just saying, the evidence cannot rest only on the word of mouth. It certainly has to go beyond that. The Butterfly saga should serve as a lesson for all intelligence managers.
The first lesson is, from intelligence perspective. Learn to differentiate between an intelligence problem, legal problem and political problem. Take for example, a scenario like the Butterfly case may present the intelligence community with all the three sets of problems.
But it is up to the services, depending on what they have or know and how they got it or came to know it that determines the best option to take.
An intelligence problem is a scenario that for the sake of protecting sources and methods, has to be solved through intelligence methods and apparatus, that for the sake of civility, would be spared for this input. When one mixes these problems, they end up in the deep end.
The second lesson is the failure of strategic counterintelligence and counterintelligence operations thereof. Strategic counterintelligence is employed to identify the adversary/ competitor’s clandestine human, technical, informational networks, and deny access to actual information of value.
Through that denial, the goal is to influence the adversary’s intelligence collection feeding that adversary’s responsible leadership. The influence and management may include the controlled release of manipulated information.
Counterintelligence operations are the heartbeat of trade craft. It is trenches of the intelligence terrain. It is normally a preserve for highly- talented and all- terrain operatives. That is because their actions are aimed at preventing our national security interests from being compromised through clandestine intelligence operations.
Further, the actions must be able to reduce the potential advantages an adversary can exploit or develop through the active engagement in doublecross- like activities meant to deceive and impose a cost on the adversary.
But to close this input, let me quote Isaac Asimov, “Do not forget that a traitor within our ranks, known to us, can do more harm to the enemy than a loyal man can do good to us”.