UNLAWFULLY IMPRISONED
For 5 years in jail, man sues government for P5 million
Thirty-eight-year old Koketso Diaparo of Mmankgodi wants government to pay him P5 million for unlawful imprisonment. Diaparo was sentenced to seven years in prison for robbery in 2008. He was to be released in 2015 but was forced by government to spend an additional five years behind bars.
Reasons for locking him up beyond his prison term were not clear and Diaparo took the matter to court. Francistown Judge Barnabas Nyamazabo ordered that Diaparo be released from prison on the 10th of December 2019 before the end of court business that day.
“I lost five years of my life confined. I need to be paid. Prison is a dangerous place if one is not focused.
One can even change to be a hardcore criminal,” Diaparo said. He has already engaged lawyers on the matter and expects the case to go to trial anytime soon. He believes the compensation will go a long way in helping him start his life afresh.
He entered prison gates at the age of 25 and is now nearing his 40s. Diaparo feels that he has missed out on life. Years have gone by. He is now old but trying to start from the very beginning.
In prison, he had a lot of idle time. This led to him doing a lot of reading and self-introspection. It was in jail that he learnt that God truly exists. “I am not proud of what I did back then and even if asked why I did it, I cannot explain.
“But I must admit, while in there, I did some deep thinking and soul searching. I now want to focus on the future. “I used to hear people teasing prisoners that they have gained weight and look healthy in prison because of the food. They look healthy because they decided to focus on God. You cannot enjoy food in prison.”
“Prison is hell that you experience eye-to-eye and physically, if you do not believe that hell exists, then visit prison. “Whenever I hear people talking about prison I run away. Batho ba ba nnang ba re ba ta pantitela ba bangwe ga ba itse se ba se buang, prison is not a playground or a holiday resort,” Diaparo said.