Senior Government officials find themselves played between contesting Chinese interests in the big money spinning construction industry. Emerging as the common ground for cancelling some contracts is a claim of ‘security risk’; an excuse PPADB is not buying. The Ministry of Land Management, Water and Sanitation Services top officials continue to take centre stage over tender controversies for projects valued at Billions of Pula. The ministry recently cancelled a tender for the design and building of a water distribution network, sanitation reticulation, telemetry and scads and associated works in Maun awarded to China Jiangsu International Botswana. In the latest development an investigation by this publication has unearthed information that Project Management Officers (PMO) for the ministry were summoned by the Permanent Secretary to the Office of the President Carter Morupisi and responsible Minister Kefentse Mzwinila two weeks ago regarding a technical evaluation undertaken by the consultant Bergstan Consulting Engineers for the P1.3 billion Masama/Mmamashia pipeline. The tender being evaluated is labeled contract 01. After the appointed consultant Bergstan evaluated the 23 tender bids and validated by PMO by December 2018, they were ready to hand them over to Public Procurement and Asset Disposal Board (PPADB) when they were stopped on…