The protracted battle between Government and BOFEPUSU over salary increases ended on Thursday afternoon after a standoff that lasted for hours at the Gaborone High Court, as the parties failed to agree on a compromise. At the centre of the disagreement was a demand by Government that the federation withdraw the interdiction of 4% increase and contempt of court cases, commit to settle all the costs of the lawsuits, and publish an apology distancing the parties from a story published by The Patriot on Sunday last week on the same subject. DPSM had earlier expressed their displeasure over the article because they believed it was revealing a lot of inside information. Government also reneged on an earlier assurance to pay the increments in retrospect to the first day they were awarded other public servants. BOFEPUSU, on the other hand, suggested sharing of costs as part of the compromise. They also agreed to publish a clarification as opposed to an apology and insisted on an order confirming the two increments but leaving the issue of back pays open for further discussion. After lengthy discussions, which at some point were referred to the Permanent Secretary to the President (PSP) Carter Morupisi, Government…