• Corporation mired in multi-million-maloti debts
• Seeks govt bailout to pay debts and salaries

Pascalinah Kabi

THE Lesotho Freight and Bus Services Corporation is drowning in debt and in dire need of a M4, 5 million bail-out from the government, the Lesotho Times can reveal.

This was revealed by the principal secretary responsible for transport in the Ministry of Public Works and Transport, Thabo Motoko.

Mr Motoko told this publication that they suspected that the corporation could have landed in the current mess due to years of maladministration and embezzlement of funds by employees.

He also said that the corporation’s financial predicament was exacerbated by the failure by political parties in the former seven parties’ administration to pay M300 000 they owed for bus rentals for the rallies they held in the run-up to last year’s general elections. In addition, a former mining minister (name supplied) is said to owe the corporation more than M200 000 for the parking space that he rents at the corporation’s industrial area in Maseru.

Lesotho Freight and Bus Services Corporation is drowning in debt and in dire need of a M4, 5 million bail-out from the government

Among other things, the M4 455 598 bail-out that the corporation requires would be used to pay M855 532 in salary arrears for 54 employees who have not been paid since April 2018.

The corporation – established through a government order No.16 of 1987 to provide transport and freight haulage within and outside Lesotho, particularly to remote and under-serviced areas – has also failed to pay M169 786 terminal benefits to its former employees.

The corporation has also failed to remit M955 603 to the Lesotho Revenue Authority (LRA) in Pay as Your Earn (PAYE) taxes and it also needs M654 700 to repair five buses.

M1 819 977 is needed to pay trade creditors and the corporation has since sought a bail-out from the Thomas Thabane administration.

In an exclusive interview with this publication this week, Mr Motoko said government was mulling to bail-out the corporation amid suspicions that it could have landed in the crisis due to years of maladministration and embezzlement of funds by employees.

Mr Motoko spoke to the Lesotho Times in the aftermath of revelations by disgruntled employees that they were struggling to make ends meet due to the corporation’s failure to pay their salaries for the past four months.

“Even as we speak, one of our colleagues died and his family is struggling to raise money for his burial because all our funeral policies have lapsed due to our failure to pay monthly premiums as we have not been paid our salaries since April,” one employee said on condition of anonymity.

He said the corporation was failing to pay salaries as its fleet of buses had all broken down and it was therefore unable to generate income. He said the last of the six buses broke down a fortnight ago.

“In 2015, the minister responsible for transport responded to our plight by availing M12 million for the purchase of six buses but unfortunately the then manager purchased second hand buses which are now having these problems,” the source said.

The source further said that investigations revealed that the former manager embezzled some of the funds and he was subsequently fired over the matter.

Another employee said the former manager’s actions contributed to the government’s decision to abandon the corporation hence the failure to pay them salaries since April.

“We tabled our grievances to the government but nothing is forthcoming despite promises that government is looking at ways to assist us.

“We hope the government will soon come to our rescue because we are in serious trouble and paying for the sins of someone who left the corporation,” the source said. He added that their banks were also threatening to sue them for the failure to service their debts.

The source also said that they feared that the banks would garnish their salaries as soon as the corporation started paying them.

On his part, Mr Motoko said he was aware of the corporation’s failure to pay the workers’ salaries and government was working to address the issue.

Mr Motoko further said that the parastatal’s problems were due to “long-term maladministration” which had not been detected and dealt with on account of the fact that the company had not been audited since “time in memorial”.

He also said the company did not have a board of directors that plays an oversight role over its administration.

“Since its establishment, the corporation has had more than 20 buses. Some of these buses were bought by the previous government of 2008 and other second-hand buses were bought in 2015. Very unfortunately, all of those buses were not compatible with our terrain and all of them except one ferrying people to Mokhotlong have broken down,” Mr Motoko said.

He said only five buses could still be repaired and the corporation has requested for M654 700 to repair the engines and gear boxes among other things.

He said the management had further asked for M855 532 to pay workers’ salaries from April to July 2018, another M169 786 for terminal benefits, M955 603 for PAYE taxes and M1 819 977 to pay other creditors.

“I have asked the acting director to furnish me with information regarding total collections from each bus per month and on average, each bus makes M270 000.

“From that figure, M250 800 is spent on monthly expenses which include diesel (M142 500) tyres (M62 000), maintenance (M30 000) and salaries for the bus crew (M16 200). Looking at these figures, one would ask if it is economically viable to resuscitate this corporation or let the private sector take over,” Mr Motoko said.

Mr Motoko said he did not understand the logic of the corporation in buying tyres for its buses every month.

He said there were a lot of suspicious irregularities they had picked from the documents submitted by the management of the corporation.

In one of the documents seen by this publication, the corporation said it needed M270 000 to repair a bus and in a different document, it stated that it will cost M65 619 to repair the same bus.

“There are very serious suspicious transactions that we have picked up and only an official audit will tell us what is really happening there. But in the meantime, we will procure all the spare parts ourselves. We will not give them money but we will bail them out by directly purchasing the parts from suppliers,” he said, adding that this was only a temporarily bail-out.”

He said he could not understand how the corporation was spending the M133 000 it collected in rentals.

“In 10 months, the corporation makes approximately M1, 3 million only from rentals and yet it has failed to finance itself and is now seeking a government bail-out. The corporation has another three assets in the form of land in Leribe, Butha-Buthe, Mokhotlong and Mohale’s Hoek and these assets should have been used to generate income. Why are these sites not developed?”

Mr Motoko said they would soon appoint a board of directors mandated to investigate and make recommendations regarding the future of the corporation.

“The corporation has not been audited since time immemorial and we will ask the office of the Auditor General to commission an audit which will also enlighten us on the issue of M12 million (that was allegedly misused by the former manager who allegedly purchased second hand buses).

“Part of the problems that have contributed to the shambles in the corporation is the fact that the political parties under the last administration failed to pay the corporation over M300 000 for hiring buses to ferry their supporters for political rallies before the elections. Furthermore, one of the former ministers under the same administration failed to pay rentals after he requested that some of his trucks be kept at the corporation’s industrial area premises,” Mr Motoko said.

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’Marafaele Mohloboli

THE principal secretary in the Ministry of Justice and Correctional Service, Advocate Lebohang Mochaba, has directed the ombudsman, Advocate Leshele Thoahlane KC to halt his inquest into the controversial promotions that were effected by the Lesotho Correctional Service (LCS) Commissioner Thabang Mothepu in May this year.

Adv Mochaba recently wrote to Adv Thoahlane informing that his (Adv Thoahlane’s) inquest was not in the public interest and she accused him of allowing his office to be used by elements bent on bringing the Lesotho Correctional Service (LCS) into disrepute.

Yesterday, Adv Thoahlane branded Adv Mochaba’s directive as an “unfortunate attempt to obstruct the office of the ombudsman from carrying out its lawful duties”.

He said he would soon respond to Adv Mochaba’s letter.

In her letter, Adv Mochaba directed Adv Thoahlane to cancel the hearings into the LCS issues which started in May this year.

“The Ministry of Justice and Correctional Service hereby respectfully and kindly informs your noble office that after a careful consideration of the ombudsman’s proceedings…the ministry has come to a decision that it is no longer in the public interest for the Commissioner (Mothepu) to appear before the Ombudsman,” part of Adv Mochaba’s letter dated 31 July 2018 reads.

Adv Mochaba’s directive comes against the background of an inquest that Adv Thoahlane is conducting concerning the affairs of the LCS.

Adv Thoahlane and LCS Commissioner Thabang Mothepu have been involved in highly publicised fallout after the former commenced hearings to ascertain the criteria that was used by the latter in promoting 50 LCS officers in May this year.

Adv Thoahlane initiated the hearings in the aftermath of complaints by some LCS officers that they had been overlooked for promotions on political grounds.

And Adv Mochaba recently expressed her misgivings over the hearings, saying in her letter that, “The ombudsman’s inquiry appears to be used to bring the Lesotho Correctional Service into disrepute, discredit and contempt”.

Adv Mochaba said the ombudsman was motivated to conduct the inquiry to assist some disgruntled and ill-disciplined officers to attain their objective of being promoted.

She said this was borne out by the fact that the hearings were only convened after one LCS officer, Sergeant Bokang Ramotena, approached the ombudsman to complain that Commissioner Mothepu had overlooked her for a promotion.

In an interview with the Lesotho Times this week, Sgt Ramotena also accused Adv Mochaba of conniving with Commissioner Mothepu to promote Ms Mochaba’s “unqualified and inexperienced husband” at her (Sgt Ramotena’s) expense.

Commenting on the ombudsman’s inquest, Adv Mochaba stated that “the office of the ombudsman is being used to impugn the good image of the LCS and assail the good character of the Commissioner of the LCS”.

“(The inquiry) seems to have been an assistance (sic) to some of the disgruntled and ill-disciplined officers of the LCS to attain their desired promotional positions contrary to the ethos and principles governing the LCS.

“This is proved by the fact that the inquiry came a few weeks after one Sergeant Ramotena approached the ombudsman in writing requesting him to assist her to be promoted to the position of Assistant Superintendent.

“We therefore, found it contrary to acceptable public policy for the Commissioner of LCS to continue to appear before the office of the ombudsman and aid in promoting officers who may not be qualified for such promotions,” Adv Mochaba wrote.

Adv Mochaba further said that it was unfortunate that “some elements within the office of the ombudsman can use that noble office to pursue their own personal agenda”.

She said in any event the hearings were not appropriate as the complainants had not exhausted all the grievance procedures within the LCS before approaching the ombudsman.

“Furthermore, the Ombudsman continues with the inquiry despite the fact that he has been informed that the officers complaining to him still have not followed the avenues provided to them by the governing rules.

“The purported inquiry had complainants who ran away from the following the grievance procedures laid down by the LCS but used the processes of the ombudsman to derelict the official duties.

“We find this absolutely appalling and damaging to the very essence of the discipline into the security agencies of the country that the ombudsman has decided to substitute our administration by his own administration contrary to the law.”

Adv Mochaba also accuses the ombudsman of denying the LCS an opportunity to respond to the inquiry in the absence of the media despite that the fact that the LCS informed him that it is a security agency whose affairs “cannot be disclosed in the public media”.

“We find it totally unacceptable to hold an investigation in the media over sensitive issues of public security,” Adv Mochaba states. Adv Mochaba added that it was against this background that the hearings should be stopped.

“The Ministry of Justice and Correctional Service has issued an instruction to the commissioner not to appear before the ombudsman.

“It is in the public interest and our key responsibility to preserve the good image of the LCS and its commissioner and also safeguard against placing our national security on the knife edge,” Adv Mochaba states.

Her letter is copied to the Minister of Justice and Correctional Service, the principal secretary in the Ministry of Law, the Attorney General, the chairperson of the Law and Public Safety parliamentary portfolio committee and the commissioner of the LCS.

Yesterday Adv Thoahlane told the Lesotho Times that it was “very unfortunate that all these accusations have been levelled against us and we have forwarded the letter to the parliamentary portfolio committee on law”.

“We shall be responding to the letter and what we see is that she (Adv Mochaba) is obstructing the office of the ombudsman from conducting its lawful duties especially now that she has even directed LCS officers not to cooperate with us,” Adv Thoahlane said.

The post Ombudsman told to cancel LCS hearings appeared first on Lesotho Times.

Ntsebeng Motsoeli

THE entrenched corruption in the Lesotho Mounted Police Service (LMPS) was this week exposed by a senior police officer who told Public Accounts Committee (PAC) that she was forced to process payments for goods and services that were never delivered to the police force.

Last week it emerged that the LMPS was stuck with uniforms worth millions at least M3, 4 million that cannot be used because their sizes are too small.
The uniforms were supplied by a company that was awarded the contract through a controversial selective tender marred by allegations of corruption and violation of procurement regulations.

And this week more dirt in the police procurement dealings was revealed when Lance Sergeant ‘Mathebe Motseki appeared before the PAC.

Lance Sergeant Motseki revealed how she was allegedly victimised by senior police officers for resisting their attempts to pressure her into processing payments for goods and services which were never delivered to the LMPS.

Lance Sergeant Motseki, who worked at the accounts office of the Police Training College (PTC) in Maseru, said hers became a living hell in the police office after she resisted the corrupt practices of her superiors.

She told the PAC that her troubles in the police service started in 2011 following the deployment of former deputy commissioner of police, Mahlape Morai as the director at PTC.

Dr Morai has since resigned from the police service and is now chairperson of the Police Complaints Authority (PCA).

Lance Sergeant Motseki accused Dr Morai, former Police Commissioner, Kizito Mhlakaza and former Assistant Commissioner of Police (ACP), Tšeliso Moerane, (who was then the PTC administrator) of victimising her for refusing to pay process payments for questionable orders for the supply of goods and services. Mr Mhlakaza has since retired from the police service.

Lance Sergeant Motseki said she and her co-worker, only identified as Makhetha, were arm-twisted into making payments for goods which were not delivered. She said that there were times when her superiors presented her with delivery notes even though the goods were not delivered.

“One of my tasks was to double-check the delivery of the supplied goods at the store before we processed payments,” Lance Sergeant Motseki said.

“Sometimes the delivery note would be produced even though the goods were not delivered. For example, there was once a delivery note for overalls for the goods which were not there.   I notified Mme Makhetha that the goods had not been delivered even though there were delivery notes. She checked and found that the goods had not been delivered. We were nonetheless asked to process the payments for the overalls order,” Lance Sergeant Motseki said.

“She confronted Dr Morai (after being asked to process payments for the overalls for police recruits which were not delivered). She (Ms Makhetha) asked for a letter authorising the payment for the overalls which had not been delivered. The letter was written and it was signed by Commissioner Mhlakaza,” Lance Sergeant Motseki said, adding she was often called by her superiors to process payments for goods even when they had not yet been delivered.

“I would be called by my bosses who told me to process payments for undelivered goods because the police service sometimes has emergencies. I was told that Mme Makhetha trusted me and that she would not say anything if I told her that the ordered goods were delivered even though they were not. I said I would not do that (process payments for goods that had not been delivered).

“Normally I would be called to Mme Morai and Ntate Moerane’s offices. I was accused of being a defiant police officer and I was told that warranted a disciplinary hearing. A criminal case was even opened against me for revealing what they regarded as secret information. I then realised that corruption could be regarded as secret information in a police organisation.”

Lance Sergeant Motseki recalled how at one the PTC accounts office was ordered to pay for six oxen which had not been delivered. The oxen were supposed to be slaughtered to provide meat for the police recruits and for their pass out ceremony.  She said she was victimised to refusing to process the payment.

She said she and her then co-workers, one senior accountant Ms Qacha and accountant Retšelisitsoe Kapa, were further surprised when a second delivery note for six more oxen was presented. She said there was no proof that those other oxen were indeed delivered and as a result she advised the two co-workers not to process their payments.

“There were no oxen in the kraal or (their carcasses) in the cold-room. I advised my co-workers not to process the payment for the other six oxen because we would be arrested. I was called into Ntate Moerane’s office and he said that they had heard that I was influencing ‘civilians’ (Ms Qacha and Ms Kapa) not to process payments. I told him I knew it was Mme Kapa who had told him that we would not pay for the undelivered goods. I also told him that as a police officer I would not let my co-workers get involved in a fraudulent practice (of processing the payments).”

She said she and Ms Qacha were later shocked to learn that the order for the six more oxen was processed and paid for. She believed that Ms Kapa or any other senior officer could have processed the payment.

Lance Sergeant Motseki said her refusal to get involved in the fraudulent practices even landed her in serious trouble with then police commissioner Mhlakaza.

“I was called to appear before the commissioner’s advisory board where we were ordered to pay for the undelivered goods. I was humiliated after the commissioner (Mhlakaza) got up from his chair and asked me to sit on it. He said I should sit on it because I was now the one running this organisation (police service) as I was doing as I pleased.

“The commissioner said that it was my intention to embarrass him because I was working with the ‘civilians’ (in the accounts office). I said we would not pay for the goods which were not delivered. Dr Morai who was present then said, ‘see, I told you that this police officer was rebellious,” Lance Sergeant Motseki told the PAC.

She said that Dr Morai subsequently had her irregularly transferred her from PTC to the Maseru Central Charge Office and thereafter to Lithoteng Police Station on the outskirts of Maseru. She added that Dr Morai continued to harass her even when they met in town until she obtained a court order against the transfer to Lithoteng Police Station.

Lance Sergeant Motseki said her transfer from the Maseru Central Charge office was also blocked by Assistant Commissioner of Police (ACP) Mofokeng Kolo.

ACP Kolo confirmed Lance Sergeant Motseki’s allegations, saying that he (ACP Kolo) was made to suffer by being denied promotion for blocking the transfer.

Lance Sergeant Motseki said she was only allowed to return to the PTC after the appointment of former police commissioner Khothatso Tšooana as the police commissioner in 2015.

Dr Morai however, denied the allegations, saying Lance Sergeant Motseki’s claims were completely new to him.

“I do not remember anything about opening a case against Motseki. She was transferred from PTC. I would have to be reminded of the circumstances (of her transfer). I do not remember anything about her harassment and the claims that I told the commissioner’s advisory board that she is a disrespectful police officer are all new to me,” Dr Morai said.

The post More dirt on LMPS procurement processes appeared first on Lesotho Times.

…faces disciplinary action over attacks on the First Lady 

Pascalinah Kabi

THE ruling All Basotho Convention (ABC) will soon haul its outspoken chairperson, Motlohi Maliehe, before a disciplinary committee over his public attack on the First Lady, Maesaiah Thabane at a rally in his Butha-Buthe constituency in May this year.

Mr Maliehe, who also serves Minister of Tourism, Environment and Culture, was informed of the party’s decision to have him appear before the ABC’s disciplinary committee in a letter that was written by the party’s Secretary General, Samonyane Ntsekele.

The letter does not however, say when and where the disciplinary hearing will be conducted.

The letter, which was seen by this publication, states that “in its sitting of 8 June 2018, the ABC National Executive Committee discussed issues contained in your letter dated 29 May 2018 in response to the letter given to you by committee, requesting you to show cause why the committee cannot suspend you as the party chairperson based on what you said at the 6 May 2018 rally at Hololo Constituency”.

“After discussing the reasons that you put forward to argue why an action cannot be taken against you, the NEC made a decision that issues surrounding the matter against you must now be dealt with by the party’s disciplinary committee,” Mr Ntsekele’s letter to Mr Maliehe further states.

Mr Maliehe grabbed the headlines in May this year when he launched a blistering attack on Ms Thabane while addressing a rally in his Butha-Buthe constituency.

Mr Maliehe said Ms Thabane was fomenting chaos in the party and in the government through “constant meddling” in the work of ministers and officials. He demanded that the First Lady stops meddling in state affairs forthwith or risk derailing the government.

The ABC chairperson accused the First Lady of derailing the government by seeking to control ministers and how they should perform their duties. He further accused Ms Thabane of violating the constitution and “abetting corruption” by instigating the removal of ministers who refused to comply with her demands.

His utterances provoked an immediate response from ABC leader and Prime Minister Thomas Thabane who was quoted in some sections of the media as having said that Mr Maliehe should pack his bags and leave his party and government positions.

However, Dr Thabane appeared to backtrack on the removal of Mr Maliehe a week after the latter’s Butha-Buthe rally. Dr Thabane adopted a more conciliatory tone when he told a Mafeteng rally that the ABC would instead work to rectify its internal problems including the infighting and vowed that they would not allow the intense bickering to derail the government and prevent it from lasting its full five-year term.

Mr Ntsekele subsequently told this publication in an interview that the party would pursue a conciliatory rather than disciplinary approach to the infighting within the party.

He said at the time that conflict was a “normal and natural occurrence” and “real democracy is about resolving conflicts constructively, listening to others…and reconciling for development”.

Mr Ntsekele was not reachable to explain why the ABC has now chosen to pursue a disciplinary approach after having suggested that the party would work to reconcile its members.

However, Mr Maliehe yesterday confirmed receipt of the letter informing him of the impending disciplinary hearing.

He however, expressed surprise and concern that the letter had been leaked to this publication.

“Where did you get the letter?” Mr Maliehe first asked, adding, “I am surprised that you have even been given that letter already”.

“I can confirm that I received such a letter and that is the only thing I am prepared to say at this stage,” Mr Maliehe said.

The notice of the disciplinary action against Mr Maliehe comes two months after he was served with a letter requesting him to explain his public attack on Ms Thabane.

At the time, Mr Ntsekele refused to give details of a letter written to Mr Maliehe “due to the sensitivity of the matter”.

Mr Ntsekele however, said the letter was in line with the party’s constitutional processes that require a party member or official to explain himself whenever they are believed to have crossed the line.

“We are not fighting the party chairman. Neither are we saying this process is aimed at firing him from cabinet or suspending him from the party. This is an internal process we cannot overlook because something happened that requires certain actions to be taken,” Mr Ntsekele said.

In his May 2018 attack on Ms Thabane, Mr Maliehe accused the First Lady of fomenting chaos in the party and in the government through “constant meddling” in the work of ministers and government officials.

“One wonders what business the First Lady has in politics. The other time she said she would reprimand any minister who was not performing. What is she and who does she think she is? Where does she get the powers to reprimand any minister,” a fuming Mr Maliehe said.

The fire-spitting Mr Maliehe said he had decided to speak out regardless of the consequences to himself.  He said he did not care if his utterances would land him in trouble. His interest was in safeguarding the founding values of the party he said he had helped form.

It was on the basis of his utterances that the ABC leader and Prime Minister Thomas Thabane allegedly said that Mr Maliehe should “pack his bags” and leave his party and government positions as he had fired himself with his unprecedented utterances.

However, all had seemed on course for a thawing of relations within the ABC after Dr Thabane addressed a rally in May in Mafeteng after Mr Maliehe’s Butha-Buthe rally. Dr Thabane conceded that there was infighting in the ABC and issued an impassioned plea for unity.

Dr Thabane also lauded all those who had openly voiced their dissatisfaction, saying this proved that the ABC was a platform for healthy debates.

He acknowledged his own mistakes and said he too was not immune to censure as evidenced by the criticism he said had been directed at him by party supporters in his Ha Abia constituency.

He admitted that his government had fallen short when it came to service delivery, adding that the government’s deficiencies were exacerbated by the infighting within the ABC. He said that there was therefore a need for self-examination to regain the trust of the nation.

The post Maliehe in trouble   appeared first on Lesotho Times.

Mohalenyane Phakela

THE 6, 5-kilometre road from Lekhalaneng to Ha Matala traffic circle via Ha Pita, whose construction has taken over two years, will finally be completed next month, the contractor has said.

Matekane Group of Companies (MGC) – Construction was contracted by the Maseru City Council to rehabilitate the urban road in May 2016.

According to MGC Head of Corporate Communication and Marketing, ‘Mamotake Matekane, the project was delayed by five months due to infrastructure for companies like the Water and Sewage Company (WASCO), the Lesotho Electricity Company (LEC) and Econet Telecom Lesotho which had to be transferred before the work could commence.

“The first design of the road was recalled when we had already ordered material and that was three months into the project,” Ms Matekane said.

“When the new design came, it changed the majority of the project.

“It also took time for service companies such as (WASCO, LEC and Econet to relocate some of their infrastructure which was in the way of the work. For instance, WASCO had 110mm, 250mm and 200mm diameter pipes on both sides of the route which when we started digging, had to divert the direction of the water on regular basis so that people can continue accessing water while we worked.”

She also said they also encountered challenges from some residents who had illegally extended their residential stands’ sizes encroaching into the are which the roadworks were supposed to be conducted.

“Some residents had illegally extended their yards and some even erected toilets or pigsties in the space meant for road construction. The communities were reluctant to move their property when we engaged them and we also engaged the Land Administration Authority officers to resurvey.

“Heavy rains, especially those that fell in the country earlier this year also disrupted our work and resulted in delays. The work was supposed to have been completed three months ago but due to some of the reasons that I have mentioned, we will only finish next month,” she said.

Ms Matekane however, said she sincerely apologised for failure to notify the affected communities of the delays.

Asked whether the government’s financial challenges affected their performance, Ms Matekane said that delayed payments always negatively impacted on most businesses and her company was not spared.

“The issue of government declaring bankruptcy did not bring anything new to our attention. They may take time to pay but eventually they do. It is general knowledge that companies encounter challenges whenever they have to get payment from government hence we often get suppliers to offer us credit and then we pay them later when the employer (government) pays us.

“However, sometimes buying on credit becomes a challenge in that when the demand is high. The supplier tends to prioritise those who buy on cash basis therefore we have to wait for cash buyers to be served first,” Ms Matekane said.

Contacted for comment, MCC public relations officer, Makatleho Mosala, also indicated that delays are often caused by services along the proposed route which are not relocated on time.

“When we plan a road construction, we engage a consultant who draws up a plan which shows the services or areas which will be affected and the costs involved,” Ms Mosala said.

She said they also face challenges with service providers who provide inaccurate maps for their infrastructure which further delays the work.

“At times the owners of the infrastructure delay their responses when you contact them. For instance, the Mohalalitoe road construction has not yet started because there is infrastructure that needs to be relocated first. It is difficult to construct roads in an area with existing residential units,” are things that need to be relocated first. It is not easy to construct a road in an existing residential area,” Ms Mosala said.

The post MGC explains roadworks delays appeared first on Lesotho Times.

Staff Reporter

FOREIGN Affairs minister Lesogo Magkothi has said that South African President Cyril Ramaphosa’s delay in appointing the Southern African Development Community (SADC) facilitators to Lesotho has compromised the country’s chances of meeting a SADC deadline to have fully implemented constitutional and security sector reforms by May 2019.

Mr Ramaphosa, who was the SADC facilitator to Lesotho since 2014, appointed former South African Deputy Chief Justice Dikgang Moseneke to lead the mediation team which also comprises of three South African deputy ministers, namely, Mohamed Enver Surty (Basic Education ministry), Makgabo Regina Mhaule (International Relations and Cooperation) and Ellen Molekane (State Security).

Mr Magkothi said the government did not understand why Mr Ramaphosa only made the appointments on 15 June when the decision to appoint the team had been made at the SADC summit in Luanda, Angola in April this year.

He said even after their late appointment the facilitation team still took time to finally visit Lesotho to begin their mission and that only served to further delay the reforms process.

“Justice Moseneke came to the country three months and three days later (after the Angola meeting),” said Mr Magkothi.

“We do not know why it took his team that long to come to Lesotho. South Africa has not told us why it took that long to deploy Justice Moseneke and his team. It was on the 15^th of June when we were officially informed by the South African foreign minister (Lindiwe Sisulu) that Justice Moseneke had been appointed as the facilitator’s representative and he (Justice Moseneke) only came to Lesotho on the 27^th of July 2018.”

Mr Magkothi said even after that first visit, Justice Moseneke only came again to Lesotho two weeks later.

“He had said he would get back to us quickly but it took him two weeks to get back to us. But we are under a strict schedule for the implementation of the reforms,” Mr Magkothi said.

Mr Makgothi also addressed the issue of the exiled leader of the Lesotho Congress for Democracy (LCD) Mothetjoa Metsing, saying the government had done everything it could to guarantee his security so that he returns to the Lesotho to participate in the reforms process.

Mr Metsing has been holed up in South Africa since fleeing Lesotho last August citing an alleged plot to assassinate him. The government has nevertheless refuted his claims, insisting that he fled to escape prosecution for corruption.

The opposition has set Mr Metsing’s return as one of the preconditions for its participation in the process to implement multi-sector reforms that are aimed at achieving lasting peace and stability in the country.

Mr Magkothi said the government given Mr Metsing three options from which to choose a security arrangement that suited him. He was asked to choose from the Lesotho Mounted Police Service (LMPS), the Lesotho Defence Force (LDF) and the SADC Preventive Mission in Lesotho (SAPMIL).

Mr Magkothi said Mr Metsing however, failed to decide and kept on making more demands on the government. He said the government had since resolved that it would determine what security arrangement it would afford the opposition leader upon his return home.

“We wrote to him Mr Metsing on the 16^th of May, saying, ‘come back home because your security is assured. You will have the security of your own choice. If you want SAPMIL or LMPS or LDF you can have any one of them’. But he did not take up the offer,” Mr Magkothi said, adding the government would now decide on its own what security to give Mr Metsing.

Mr Magkothi also said they could not force the judiciary to drop the corruption case against Mr Metsing. He however, said that the government had had “consulted the relevant departments to ensure that court cases that are pending against the leader of the LCD and similarly placed persons will not prevent them against participating in good faith in the very crucial processes leading to the comprehensive national reforms”.

The post Govt speaks on SADC facilitation appeared first on Lesotho Times.

Pascalinah Kabi

THE government is tomorrow expected to table a progress report at the Southern African Development Community (SADC) summit in Windhoek, Namibia amid indications that the regional body is increasingly impatient with the slow pace of implementing multi-sector reforms.

The 38th ordinary summit of the heads of state and government of SADC will take place from tomorrow to Friday.

At the last summit in Luanda, Angola in April this year, Lesotho was given until May 2019 to have fully implemented constitutional and security sector reforms. The regional body also said that Lesotho should present a progress report at the next SADC summit (the one that is currently underway in Namibia).

Sources within the regional body this week told the Lesotho Times that SADC was concerned that the government and other stakeholders who include the political opposition were not doing enough to ensure the reforms would have been fully implemented by next year.

“SADC heads of state states are not happy with the direction taken by the leaders of this country towards the implementation of reforms,” a source told this publication.

“During the Angola summit (in April), the leaders clearly showed their dissatisfaction with how things were going in Lesotho. SADC deployed a standby force in Lesotho and nine months later, there is no significant progress towards the implementation of the reforms and this is not sitting well with the heads of state. They feel that the government of Lesotho and other political leaders are dragging their feet on this very important matter.”

The reforms process has stalled largely as a result of the constant bickering between the government and the opposition over the latter’s demands for the establishment of a government of national unity and an end to the prosecutions of army officers suspected of human rights violations among other things.

So far, the only tangible developments with regards to the reforms process have been Prime Minister Thomas Thabane’s speech in parliament to formally launch the reforms and the holding of the National Day of Prayer for the reforms in June.

A government roadmap that was presented to the SADC heads of state in Angola indicated that the National Leaders’ Forum and the National Dialogue Planning Committee (NDPC) would have been convened and launched in May. These action plans have still not been carried out.

Of late there has been a flurry of activity on the government side with dates being announced for the National Leaders’ Forum. The National Leaders’ Forum was supposed to have been held last Thursday but it was postponed indefinitely after it was boycotted by the opposition.

Prime Minister Thomas Thabane also announced that an all-inclusive multi-stakeholder national dialogue will be held in October.

However, another SADC source told this publication that the government efforts “were not enough and appear to have been motivated by the need to present signs of progress and action at the SADC summit in Namibia.”

SADC Oversight Committee Chairperson, Matias Bertino Matondo was not available on his mobile phone for comment amid indications that he had already left for the Namibia summit.

On his part, the Government Secretary, Moahloli Mphaka, said if at all SADC was not happy with the pace of the reforms, it had not communicated that position to the government.

According to Mr Mphaka, SADC in fact happy with the government for working harmoniously with the regional body towards finding a long-lasting solution to Lesotho’s problems.

“To the best of my knowledge, that issue (of SADC’s frustration with the slow pace of implementing reforms) has not been raised with the government.

“Even during our last week meeting with (SADC facilitator to Lesotho) Justice Dikgang Moseneke, the issue was not raised. I do recall however, that SADC is very appreciative of the fact that this government is working harmoniously with them unlike in the past,” Mr Mphaka said.

He said the government would table its progress report on the reforms process at the summit tomorrow and that the Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Relations, Lesego Makgothi “was in charge of that matter”.

“I am not sure of the contents of the (progress) report because at the time they (Mr Makgothi and his delegation) left the country (for Namibia on Sunday) I had not seen it.

“Progress on the ground is very slow because the multi-stakeholder forum which was scheduled for this month has been pushed to 9 to 12 October 2018. However, the Ministry of Defence and National Security is on the verge of completing its draft roadmap for the security sector reforms.

“The implementation of the actual reforms will begin after the multi-stakeholder forum. We have to bear in mind that the parliament still needs to enact the Reforms Commission Bill into a law before we can embark on this road,” added Mr Mphaka.

The post ‘SADC unhappy with slow pace of reforms’ appeared first on Lesotho Times.

Ntsebeng Motsoeli

THE Commissioner of Labour, ‘Mamohale Matsoso has denied involvement in an alleged syndicate within the Ministry of Labour that is reportedly granting work permits to undeserving foreigners.

Ms Matsoso denied the allegations of her involvement in the fraudulent practices during her appearance before the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) this week.

She said she was aware that she had been named as one of the members of the alleged syndicate but the allegations were unfounded.

Ms Matsoso made the denial after a member of the PAC, Sam Rapapa, asked whether or not there were reported cases of corruption in the issuance of work permits.

The Principal Secretary in the Ministry of Labour, Lechoo Setenane, said police investigations were underway on the reported cases of corruption where some officers in the ministry were accused of fraudulently giving work certificates to foreigners.

“There is a strong allegation that some officers in this ministry (Labour) have been involved cases of corruption in the issuance of work permits,” Mr Setenane said.

“I have been informed that the alleged malpractice has been going on for a very long time. Some cases have been reported to the police and I am informed that the DCEO (Directorate on Corruption and Economic Offences) has been investigating.

“I have had the opportunity to meet some of the police officers who are handling the case and I asked them to see the case through.”

Kh’ohlisa Maputsoe, a legal officer in the Ministry of Labour, told the PAC that it was discovered that some officers fraudulently accessed a stamp from the labour commissioner’s office to certify letters that allowed some expatriates to continue working while awaiting the issuance of their work permits.

Ms Maputsoe said an officer identified as Ndabeni was implicated in the matter and he has since left the ministry.

Ms Matsoso replied by saying that her office never issued letters that allowed expatriates to work in the country without permits. She professed ignorance of the case involving Ndabeni and said she only knew of a case involving one Telisi who had improperly used the ministry’s letterhead and a stamp from the National Employment Services office.

“I did not write any letter. We do not have anyone by the name of Telisi in the ministry but I’m aware of someone by the name Telisi who is said to have been involved in the improper use of the ministry’s letterhead and a stamp from the National Employment Services office.

“There have been some newspaper reports that I was corrupt. I have taken a legal action against people who have accused me of opening an office that issues illegal work permits,” Ms Matsoso said, adding those who made the accusations had never been able to cite any specific cases of her alleged corruption.

“No one has come forward with a specific case where I could have been involved in the fraudulent practcse of awarding work permits.”

She added that disciplinary processes had been initiated against an officer, Nthoateng Russell, for fraudulently acquiring her office stamp which she used to certify a letter that allowed a South African company to put up a billboard.

Ms Matsoso said Russell worked with another person who was not an officer in the labour ministry and the two received M32 000 as a bribe.

PAC chairperson Selibe Mochoboroane said the PAC was determined to unearth more cases of corruption in the issuance of work permits for expatriates.

“The fact of the matter is that there is corruption in the issuance of permits in the Ministry of Labour,” Mr Mochoboroane said.

The post Labour Commissioner denies corruption claims appeared first on Lesotho Times.

’Marafaele Mohloboli

FACTORY workers were this week dealt a major blow in their quest for wage increments after High Court judge Justice Tšeliso Monaphathi issued an interim court order blocking the gazetting of the M2000 minimum wage which was recently approved by the cabinet last week.

As news of Justice Monaphathi’s decision filtered throughout the country, the restive workers took to the streets of Ha Thetsane which houses the textile factories in Maseru and registered their anger by barricading roads with stones and burning tyres.

The factory workers have been in a belligerent mood since June this year when they first marched in the capital to press the government to legislate a minimum wage of M2000. The average monthly wage is currently M1200 and this is not sustainable especially in the face of increases in Value-Added Tax (VAT), electricity and water tariffs, taxi fares, fuel and prices of other basic goods.

Thousands of workers converged at the Moshoeshoe 1 monument in Maseru on 25 June where they delivered a petition to Prime Minister Thomas Thabane demanding salary increments for all workers.

The protestors, who comprised of factory employees, security guards and general workers from the retail and catering sector, want a 15 percent increment for all workers. They are also demanding a general minimum wage of M2000 for factory workers.

The workers also demanded that Dr Thabane sack Labour Minister, Keketso Rantšo, who they accused of neglecting their welfare concerns.

Last week the workers thought their demands had been met when cabinet resolved to gazette a minimum wage of M2000 which would be backdated to 1 April this year. But their joy was short-lived on Monday when Justice Monaphathi granted an urgent application that was filed by Advocate Tseko Banyane on behalf of the Association of Lesotho Employers (ALE) and the Lesotho Textile Exporters Association (LTEA).

Judge Monaphathi ordered that the employers’ application “should be treated with the urgency it deserves and that the Minister of Labour and Employment is interdicted from issuing the gazette as communicated to the Wages Board by the Minister of Public Service and Minister in the Prime Minister’s office on August 10, 2018”.

Government spokesperson Nthakeng Selinyane last week said that “the cabinet on Tuesday 7 August, approved its ministerial subcommitte’s recommendation to set the factory workers entry point wage at M2000 per month and directed the Minister of Labour and two other ministers of public service and the minister in the prime minister’s office to convene the wages advisory board to facilitate enactment of a legal notice / gazette to this effect”.

Pursuant to the cabinet decision, Labour Minister, Ms Rantšo was expected to this week issue a gazette confirming the new wage structures.

However, this was not to be as the employer associations successfully petitioned the courts for an interdict. The employers had argued that they could not afford the new wages and the government had only effected the increase for “political reasons”.

According to the employers’ court papers the matter ought to be treated with urgency as the gazette could be issued “anytime” following a cabinet directive to Ms Keketso Rantšo.

The applicants (ALEB and LTEA) had asked the respondents (Minister of Labour and Employment, Cabinet Ministers, Cabinet Sub-Committee, Wages Advisory Board and the Attorney General) to “show cause why they may not be interdicted from issuing the gazette on the factory workers minimum wage of M2000 effective from 1 April 2018 pending the finalisation of the matter”.

In Thetsane, the factory workers reacted to the court’s decision to block the wage increments by rioting and barricading roads and thus disturbing the smooth flow of traffic on Tuesday and yesterday.

Meanwhile the workers’ unions have said that factory workers will not go back to work until the gazette on their salaries increment has been published.

Mr May Rathakane, the deputy secretary of the Independent Democratic Unions of Lesotho (IDUL), yesterday told the Lesotho Times that the workers have decided not to return to work “because they want the government and the employers to feel a great pinch”.

“We have decided to stand by our people (the workers) in their demands because we feel their predicament. We also don’t have much hold over them if they decide to be violent because they have been angered by the employers who have always been a part of the negotiations in the build up to the wage increments.

“Our people are very angry and there is nothing we can do about it. If we push them to go to work, that’ll be really unfair of us because we won’t have anything to give them.

“Politicians in the past have made them promises which they never kept. So, how are they supposed to trust the current government when they know that all they ever get are empty promises? If they choose to down tools then let it be. They (the workers) also feel that the opposition is behind the blockage of their salaries,” Mr Rathakane said yesterday.

Mr Rathakane spoke from the Thetsane industrial area where fresh riots erupted in opposition to the court’s decision to block the gazetting of wage increments.

This week’s riots and protests follow similar protests last week in Thetsane and Maputsoe where they vandalised private property.

Standard Lesotho Bank in Maputsoe and some Chinese shops were stoned and damaged. In Thetsane, rowdy workers set up street barricades with rocks and burned tyres. They also stoned some Chinese-owned shops near Lifefo playground and attacked police officers with stones.

Some of the residents in Thetsane locked themselves in their houses in fear of the protestors. The workers also disturbed the smooth flow of traffic by blockading the road. Even yesterday, some of the rocks and burnt tyres could still be seen on the roads in Thetsane.

Speaking on last week’s protests, Police spokesperson Superintendent Mpiti Mopeli, said, “They (striking workers) wreaked a lot of havoc in Maputsoe as some factories were also vandalised”.

“We are yet to assess the cost of the damage. A man was also arrested after he was caught red-handed smashing the Standard Lesotho Bank offices.

“Many Chinese shops were also vandalised and we believe that we are going to make more arrests once we have gone through the Closed-Circuit Television (CCTV) footages availed to us,” Sup. Mopeli said.

He said there were also two people who were injured in Maputsoe “and it is yet to be established whether they were shot by police with rubber bullets because things had really gone out of hand”.

The post Blow for workers as court blocks wage increases appeared first on Lesotho Times.

Ntsebeng Motsoeli

RULING All Basotho Convention (ABC) legislator Sam Rapapa has warned of unrest and possible factory closures and retrenchments in the aftermath of the government’s decision to increase the factory workers’ wages by 62 percent.

Last week the cabinet resolved to gazette a minimum wage of M2000 for factory workers which would be backdated to 1 April this year.

The government’s decision followed a series of protracted negotiations which failed to yield an agreement between factory workers’ unions and their employers.

This week, Mr Rapapa who is also a member of the Public Accounts Committee (PAC), said the government decision put the country in serious “trouble” as it was “made on emotions and not on facts” which show that the increment is not economically sustainable.

The factory owners, who have coalesced under the banner of the Association of Lesotho Employers (ALE) and the Lesotho Textile Exporters Association (LTEA), also say the wage increments are not sustainable. They have since obtained an interim court interdict barring the government from gazetting the M2000 minimum wage.

Speaking during the PAC session with the Ministry of Labour and Employment on Monday, Mr Rapapa appeared to concur with the employers. He said while it was good to increase the workers’ salaries, there was no way the factory owners could afford to pay wage increments in a short space of time and remain viable.

He warned the government to brace for the worst as the unsustainable wage increments could force some factory owners to close shop as was the case some years ago in neighbouring South Africa.

“I can only imagine the costs of running business which include workers’ salaries, cost of the materials, electricity and many others.

“Then there is the 62 percent increment that is going to be paid in arrears. That comes up to almost M25 million. To expect the investors to raise that amount and arrears in five months is not feasible,” Mr Rapapa said.

“This country is faced with a very dynamic situation where we are going to witness real problems. We can all attest to the fact that there were many factories in QwaQwa which were closed down. The problem was the minimum wage. The same happened in Botshabelo.

“While we are happy that factory workers have gotten the increment, the fact is that this places a huge burden on the employers by increasing the wage bill by 62 percent plus the arrears. This country is in trouble. We are at the crossroads.”

Mr Rapapa suggested that the government decided on the wage increment on the basis of emotions and not on facts.

“Such decisions must not be made on emotions but with numbers and facts.

“What surprised me again is that the labour unions had asked the M2000 increment in two tranches, the first tranche this year and the second next year. And a political decision is then made that the M2000 must be paid now just because there is an ILO (International Labour Organisation) study that was done five years ago. This matter should be dealt with using calculators and clear heads.”

A 2012 ILO study indicated that the living wage in Lesotho is around M2850 and since the then the trade unions have been calling for the restructuring of the minimum wage for textile workers from M 1238 to M2020 per month.

Mr Rapapa warned the government to brace for petitions from retrenched workers once the investors leave due to the unsustainable wage increments.

“The Ministry of Labour should prepare for unrest when the investors leave,” Mr Rapapa added.

Fellow PAC member, Palo Leteetee, concurred with Mr Rapapa, saying a government bailout to enable the factories to pay their workers was the only solution to what he said was the impending unrest.

“I was hoping that the Labour Commissioner (‘Mamohale Matsoso) tell us that there is a bailout plan from government. How is this going to work out? Even China Garments Manufacturers (CGM) was given a bailout to sustain its operations. The only solution is for the government to bailout all the factories so that they are able to pay their workers or we will be in trouble. They (investors) will go,” Mr Leteetee said.

In 2008, CGM received a M30 million bailout from government to enable it to remain viable.

PAC chairperson, Selibe Mochoboroane however, differed with his colleagues, saying the 2012 ILO study showed that the factory owners could afford the salary increments but they were just not willing to award them.

Another legislator, Thabo Sofoneea, concurred with Mr Mochoboroane, saying it was disheartening that five years after the ILO’s recommendations, the minimum wage had still not been increased.

The post Rapapa warns of more worker unrest appeared first on Lesotho Times.

…as Thabane warns that the ruling party is “drifting towards hatred, killings and corruption” 

’Marafaele Mohloboli

PRIME Minister and All Basotho Convention (ABC) leader Thomas Thabane has warned that the strife-torn party is “drifting towards hatred, killings and corruption”.

Dr Thabane said it pained him that barely a year after assuming power in the 3 June 2017 elections, the ABC is riddled with serious in-fighting which has even affected its capacity to deliver services to the electorate.

Dr Thabane said this while addressing a rally in Ha ’Makhoroana in Mapoteng in the Berea district at the weekend.

His comments come against the background of escalating tensions and infighting within the ABC which were most recently manifested at the party’s leadership conference in Berea on Friday night.

Legislators Nyapane Kaya and Malimong constituency legislator Leshoboro Mohlajoa exchanged harsh words and almost came to blows at the Friday event. The duo got involved in a heated argument after the party’s National Executive Committee (NEC) resolved to bar its chairperson, Motlohi Maliehe, from chairing the Friday conference.

The leadership conference, which spilled into the early hours of Saturday, was convened to prepare for the ABC’s special conference scheduled for the 24th of this month in Quthing.

The outspoken Mr Maliehe, who has already ruffled feathers with his blistering public attack on the First Lady, Maesaiah Thabane in May this year, was once again in the eye of the storm on Friday.

It was his refusal to heed the NEC’s decision to bar him from chairing the Friday conference that sparked angry exchanges among the legislators which almost degenerated into fisticuffs between the former Health Minister Kaya and Malimong constituency legislator Mohlajoa.

Mr Maliehe was barred from chairing the conference on the grounds that he had pending appearance before the party’s disciplinary committee over his public attack on Ms Thabane.

Mr Maliehe also took his fight with party colleagues to a new level by defying Dr Thabane’s directive that he should not chair the Friday conference. Dr Thabane made the call after NEC members voted overwhelming to bar Mr Maliehe from chairing the proceedings.

And in his address in Mapoteng on Sunday, Dr Thabane avoided the issue of Mr Maliehe.

He however, spoke of the pain of witnessing how much the ABC had become riven with infighting barely a year after assuming power.

He appealed to party members to follow the party channels to air their grievances and desist from publicising their concerns in the media particularly radio stations.

He also said that the party’s NEC was busy working to address the grievances and concerns of the party faithful and warned that “anyone, even if it’s some members of the NEC, who are bringing disrepute to the party by giving information to radio stations, then things will be ugly”.

“It is a searing arrow to me as a leader that so early in my leadership, there are tussles, hearts are hurting and all hope is lost,” Dr Thabane said, adding, “This has to come to an end and we must unite for the sake of our stability and growth”.

Dr Thabane promised that the party’s leadership would deal with the concerns of the ABC supporters as they (supporters) on the ground were better placed to see “where the train has been derailed”.

“I have also noted that you (party members) are drifting towards hatred, killings and corruption.

“As the leadership of the party and the NEC, we have learnt of your dissatisfactions with the administration of the party and this is an issue which has spilled into the media. I have also accepted that we have problems and I want to tell you that most of your grievances are being dealt with.

“I know what you have been through to topple the previous government and your efforts have not been forgotten and therefore I have even directed my cabinet ministers to give me work plans we can implement so that we ensure that there is service delivery and you also get jobs as expected.

“Let us not forget where we come from and let us work together as a team. We should try by all means not to fight among ourselves as this can impact negatively on our party and on our coalition government partners and give cause for our enemies to rejoice in our problems,” Dr Thabane said.

The ABC came to power in the aftermath of the 3 June elections when it combined its parliamentary seats with those of the Alliance of Democrats (AD), Basotho National Party (BNP) and the Reformed Congress of Lesotho (RCL) to form a coalition government.

Not long afterwards cracks began to emerge within the ABC and the earliest signs of internal strife came immediately after the announcement of the cabinet in July last year. There were reports that legislators from the Berea district were not happy that only one of their number, Habofanoe Lehana, of the Khafung #23 constituency was given a ministerial position.

This was despite the fact that the district had given the ABC its second biggest area electoral win with nine seats out of the 11 contested in that district in the June elections.  The ABC’s biggest win was in Maseru where it won 15 of the 18 contested seats in the district.

The reports of internal strife during that period were confirmed by Dr Thabane who subsequently told a rally in Hlotse that the ABC had been infiltrated by “enemies who have come to confuse us”.

And on Sunday, Dr Thabane reminded party members that although the ABC was the main partner in the governing coalition and ought to be championing service delivery, “things were not working as expected because of dissatisfactions among party members”.

“I therefore urge all of us who have been voted (into positions of power) to self-introspect and start delivering as expected,” Dr Thabane said.

He also expressed gratitude to his coalition partners for refraining from meddling in the ABC and allowing it to sort out its issues.

“I am very grateful that my coalition partners have respected me thus far to lead them without meddling in our internal affairs as a party.”

However, his sentiments were at variance with those of the ABC’s Ha ’Makhoroana legislator, Lefu Hlomelang, who accused the coalition partners of seeking to exploit the divisions within the ABC.

Mr Hlomelang said that his constituency was faced with challenges of unemployment, adding, “What is even sad is to see some of our coalition partners taking advantage of our situation and luring our people to join their parties by promising them jobs”.

“One just gets to wonder where these jobs are and why we can’t access them.

“Our youth are jobless and they have even embarked on some projects which are also not doing well as they don’t have machinery. The people in this area still drink water from wells with animals, yet our country is exporting water to South Africa,” Mr Hlomelang added.

The post ABC in a crisis appeared first on Lesotho Times.

’Marafaele Mohloboli

PRIME Minister and All Basotho Convention (ABC) leader Thomas Thabane’s bodyguards had to scramble to their vehicles to retrieve guns to protect the premier after the ABC’s weekend rally in Mapoteng in the Berea district descended into chaos.

The chaos and potential security risk to Dr Thabane and other government and party officials occurred in the aftermath of heated exchanges and threats of violence among members of the Terene group of famo musicians.

The famo musicians also traded barbs with some of the government officials and brushed aside attempts by some cabinet ministers to calm down tempers at the Sunday event.

Led by one Ntei Tšehlana, the militant famo musicians used the Sunday rally to accuse unnamed senior ABC and government officials of denying them access to Dr Thabane whenever they sought to present their welfare concerns. They also accused some of their members of being sell-outs who allowed themselves to be used by cabinet ministers to the detriment of the unspecified interests of the famo group.

Nothing could have suggested the tensions and high drama that were soon to follow when Dr Thabane, ABC officials and ordinary party supporters gathered for the rally on a wintry Sunday afternoon in Ha ’Makhoroana in Mapoteng.

Mr Tšehlana was given the platform to address the rally before Dr Thabane and he took full advantage to vent frustrations which appeared to have been building up over the one year that the ABC has been at the helm of government.

Mr Tšehlana shot from the hip, accusing some of his colleagues within the famo movement of masquerading as leaders of the group and instigating violent killings of fellow group members.

He said such group members enjoyed the support of some government officials who controlled access to Dr Thabane.

He further said that the rightful leader of the Terenegroup was Khosi Mosotho Chakela who is said to be in exile for undisclosed reasons.

“Whoever claims to represent Terene is lying because there is only one leader for the Terene and only oneTerene. That leader is Khosi Mosotho Chakela,” Mr Tšehlana said.

In a direct address to Dr Thabane, Mr Tšehlana charged that, “Day in and out we are being killed by some of the people who are with us right here and they are busy befriending ministers”.

“We have observed this behaviour and we appeal to you to address it. Ntate Thabane you may be wondering where all the people clad in yellow (Terene members), who always followed you in large masses have gone to.

“Today, our leader Chakela is barred from entering the country as all sorts of demands are required of him by your regime. This is exactly what used to happen in Ntate (former Prime Minister Pakalitha) Mosisili’s time.”

At this point, Mr Tšehlana had worked himself into a raging torrent and he would not be restrained. Not even the deputy chairperson of ABC, Kemiso Mosenene, could restrain him from speaking on.

“We are denied access whenever we want to talk to you as our leader Ntate Thabane. So, don’t even attempt to stop me Ntate Mosenene,” Mr Tšehlana thundered on.

When it became clear that Mr Mosenene would not succeed in restraining Mr Tšehlana, the driver of the Minister of Police, Sarele Sello, suddenly advanced towards Mr Tšehlana.

Mr Sello is popularly known as Lehlanya (loosely translated to mean a mad man) in music circles and he is considered to be a right-hand man of Mr Chakela.

Draping his yellow blanket on his shoulder associated with the Terene group and with his fighting stick brandished, Mr Sello advanced towards Mr Tšehlana who continued to stand his ground.

“I can pee on you. I don’t fear you Lehlanya but I only respect you. I can pee on you,” Mr Tšehlana shouted.

By then the two antagonists were within a few metres from where Dr Thabane was seated while awaiting his turn to address the rally.

A group of Terene members who had been squatting on the ground then sprung to the rescue of Mr Tšehlana. The ensuing commotion caught Dr Thabane’s unprepared bodyguards by surprise, forcing them to scupper to their vehicles to fetch guns to ensure the premier was adequately protected.

The chaos only died down in the wake of impassioned pleas to Messrs Tšehlana and Lehlanya by some ministers, who included Social Development Minister ’Matebatso Doti.

For the remainder of the rally, the bodyguards then brandished their rifles and stood close to Dr Thabane, forming a body shield to ensure his safety.

The Lesotho Times has since established that the Terenegroup is heavily divided with one faction backing Mr Chakela and the other having thrown its weight behind Mr Lehlanya.

The Terene group originates from Mafeteng and last year in September alone, there were 63 famo-related killings in the same district. This prompted some civil society organisations to hold prayers in an attempt to restore peace among the feuding famo musicians and their supporters.

Before the current infighting in the Terene group, the turf war had been between the Terene and another Mafeteng famo gang known as the Seakhi.

The two groups have a history of incendiary lyrics and their songs are often used to insult rival artistes and their followers. Previous governments have tried and failed to broker peace among famo groups.

The post Thabane’s security breached at ABC rally appeared first on Lesotho Times.

 …Maliehe says not bitter with the decision

Pascalinah Kabi

PRIME Minister Thomas Thabane has sacked Tourism, Culture and Environment Minister, Motlohi Maliehe, the third such dismissal this year.

The outspoken Maliehe was relieved of his ministerial duties this week after several highly publicised clashes with the party leadership including Dr Thabane himself and his wife, Maesaiah Thabane.

Soon after being shown the exit door, Mr Maliehe poured his heart out to the Lesotho Times saying he is not a bitter man.

Instead the ruling All Basotho Convention (ABC) chairperson and Butha-Buthe legislator says he will now fully devote his energies to party business and representing the “interests of the Butha-Buthe people who have trusted me to be their voice since 2002”.

Mr Maliehe’s dismissal was confirmed by the Press Attaché in the Prime Minister’s Office, Thabo Thakalekoala. Mr Thakalekoala said the premier had resolved to fire Mr Maliehe with effect from Tuesday.

“Pursuant to the provision of Section 87 (7) of the constitution of Lesotho, His Majesty King Letsie III has accepted the advice of the Right Honourable Prime Minister to release Honourable Motlohi Maliehe from the office of the minister in the government of Lesotho,” Mr Thakalekoala said in a statement.

“In this connection, his (Mr Maliehe’s) appointment as a minister ends on 14 August 2018.

“The Prime Minister has appointed Minister in the Prime Minister’s Office Honourable Temeki Tšolo to act as Minister of Tourism, Environment and Culture with effect from 14 August 2018 until the appointment of a substantive holder,” Mr Thakalekoala said.

Although the premier did not give reasons for his decision, Mr Maliehe himself acknowledged that his dismissal was not unexpected. His dismissal had been looming ever since May this year when he launched a blistering attack on Ms Thabane while addressing a rally in Hololo constituency in the Butha-Buthe district.

Mr Maliehe accused Ms Thabane of fomenting chaos in the party and in the government through “constant meddling” in the work of ministers and officials. He demanded that the First Lady stops meddling in state affairs forthwith or risk derailing the government.

The ABC chairperson accused the First Lady of derailing the government by seeking to control ministers and how they should perform their duties. He further accused Ms Thabane of violating the constitution and “abetting corruption” by instigating the removal of ministers who refused to comply with her demands.

His utterances provoked an immediate response from ABC leader and Prime Minister Thomas Thabane who was quoted in some sections of the media as having said that Mr Maliehe should pack his bags and leave his party and government positions.

Mr Maliehe still faces the prospect of being booted out of the ABC as he has a pending disciplinary case before the party’s National Executive Committee (NEC) in connection with his attacks on Ms Thabane.

In an interview with the Lesotho Times this week, Mr Maliehe confirmed receiving the letter of dismissal from his ministerial post on Tuesday afternoon.

“This is my last day in office and I am not aggrieved at all. I saw this one coming and to be fair, I have been expecting this to happen for a long time.

“I am going back to parliament to push for the interests of the Butha-Buthe people who have trusted me to be their voice since 2002.

“I am not going to leave the party. This is my party and I am going to use all the time I now have to ensure that this party grows and stays true to its founding principles. If I ever feel tired of politics, I will retire instead of leaving Kobo-tata (ABC) for another political party. I am a founding member of this party and I will continue to work hard to ensure that it grows in leaps,” Mr Maliehe said.

He also said he was confident that he had enough support within the party to enable him to prevail at the impending disciplinary hearing that the ABC NEC has proposed.

Last month the ABC Secretary General, Samonyane Ntsekele, wrote to Mr Maliehe informing him that he would soon appear before a disciplinary committee over his attacks on Ms Thabane.

Mr Maliehe said he would prevail because it was only a few elements who had a gripe with him. And in an apparent potshot at Dr Thabane, he suggested that he had not lost anything with his dismissal as he had been voted to become a legislator and not a minister in the first place.

“My problems are with the few ABC executive members, not the ABC itself because as things stand I have massive following within this party. It should be understood that I was never voted to become a minister but voted to go to parliament to represent the people of Butha-Buthe; that I will continue doing religiously,” he said.

Mr Maliehe, who also served as Forestry and Land Reclamation Minister, is the third ABC legislator to be fired from government since the advent of the four-party coalition in the aftermath of the 3 June 2017 snap elections.

First to be fired in February 2018 was outspoken former Minister of Health Nyapane Kaya and his cabinet colleague, Lehlohonolo Moramotse, who was Public Works and Transport Minister.

The ABC is in a coalition with the Alliance of Democrats (AD), Basotho National Party (BNP) and the Reformed Congress of Lesotho (RCL) after winning the June 3 2017 snap elections.

The post  Thabane fires Maliehe appeared first on Lesotho Times.

Pascalinah Kabi

Fired cabinet minister and chairman of the ruling All Basotho Convention (ABC), Motlohi Maliehe, has made sensational claims that State House, the prime minister’s official residence in Maseru, was used as a secret venue by a group of party stalwarts who plotted to assassinate him.

This and other damning allegations are contained in Mr Maliehe’s response to the letter that the ABC wrote to him, demanding that he ‘show cause’ why he should not be suspended from the party for his public attacks on First Lady, Maesaiah Thabane, in May this year.

Mr Maliehe, who also served as Minister of Tourism, Environment and Culture until he was sacked by Dr Thabane this week, is set to appear before a disciplinary committee over his public attacks on Ms Thabane.

Mr Maliehe grabbed the headlines in May this year when he launched a blistering attack on Ms Thabane while addressing a rally in Hololo constituency in the Butha-Buthe district.

Mr Maliehe accused Ms Thabane of fomenting chaos in the party and in the government through “constant meddling” in the work of ministers and officials. He demanded that the First Lady stops meddling in state affairs forthwith or risk derailing the government.

The ABC chairperson further accused the First Lady of derailing the government by seeking to control ministers and how they performed their duties. He further accused Ms Thabane of violating the constitution and “abetting corruption” by instigating the removal of ministers who refused to comply with her demands. The stinging remarks have now resulted in Mr Maliehe’s Waterloo as a cabinet minister.

The ABC’s National Executive Committee (NEC) had subsequently written to Mr Maliehe and asked him to ‘show cause’ why he should not be suspended from the party for attacking Ms Thabane.

The outspoken ABC chairperson responded to the party’s ‘show cause’ letter on 29 May and his response has been a closely guarded secret until this week when the Lesotho Times saw a copy of his letter.

Mr Maliehe cited several reasons why the party should not suspend him.  Among these is the sensational allegation that there was a long-term plot to assassinate him. Mr Maliehe said the conspirators who were known to him, had convened secret meetings at State House to plan his elimination, a veiled accusation that the Prime Minister himself could have been part of the plot since his home cannot conceivably be used for such s nefarious act without his consent. However, Mr Maliehe neither mentions the PM nor his wife directly in the letter.

“People, whom I know their names (sic), have been meeting at the State House plotting to kill me for a very long time now and I will reveal their names if need be,” Mr Maliehe stated in his letter to the ABC.

“While travelling in my vehicles, my children were stopped twice on the road by people asking my whereabouts yet it was a well-known fact that I stay at Maseru West and I travel in my official vehicles.

“Three weeks ago (early in May) my staff was trailed and chased by fully armed people who thought I was travelling in that car and I know who these people are and who sent them to kill me,” he added.

Mr Maliehe also said he was left with no choice but to speak his mind at the Butha-Buthe rally after being continuously sidelined from decision-making meetings of the party by Dr Thabane who repeatedly failed to give him an audience to air his grievances.

He said he was sidelined from meetings that were held to make serious decisions like the setting up of a cabinet in the aftermath of the June 2017 national elections, meetings on the firing and hiring of ministers as well as the appointment of principal secretaries and ambassadors.

He accused Dr Thabane of ignoring his phone calls as well as refusing to discuss his ministerial duties with him.

He said his case was unlike that of other ministers who reported on their ministries’ work to the premier before cabinet meetings were held. He said Dr Thabane sidelined him and he (Dr Thabane) only got to hear about his ministry’s endeavours at the cabinet meetings. The premier never convened any pre-cabinet meetings with him, Mr Maliehe said.

Mr Maliehe said his attempts to get ABC secretary general Samonyane Ntsekele, deputy leader Prince Maliehe and deputy chairperson Kemiso Mosenene to intervene and end his isolation failed.

He also said his efforts to appoint a four-person Lesotho Tourism Development Corporation (LTDC) board were thwarted allegedly by Dr Thabane and Government Secretary Moahloli Mphaka.

“I tried everything to meet with the Prime Minister to straighten out these matters and until today (29 May) when I write this letter, I still haven’t met him. This means my hands are tied and the (LTDC) board cannot perform its duties yet the law gives the minister all the powers to appoint the board and no one else,” Mr Maliehe said.

He also said that despite being the ABC chairperson, he was sidelined even when it came to crucial party matters like the appointment of a replacement of former ABC deputy leader Tlali Khasu.

Mr Khasu left the ABC on 17 September 2016 after being suspended for three months for allegedly castigating Dr Thabane during a radio programme.

His spirited attempts to challenge the suspension in courts of law proved futile as the High Court upheld the decision to suspend him.

Mr Khasu subsequently formed the True Reconciliation Unity (TRU) party in January 2017 together with another former ABC stalwart, Pitso Maisa. The party fared appallingly on June 3 2017 and seems to have since died a natural death.

Mr Khasu was replaced by Maliehe Prince Maliehe (not a relation of Mr Maliehe) in January this year. According to the fired Mr Maliehe, the appointment of his namesake was made at one of the secret meetings which he was not invited to.

“In a secret meeting, a decision was taken to fill the post that was left vacant by Ntate Tlali Khasu. While I don’t have a problem with the person appointed to that position, I do have a problem with the manner in which that decision was arrived at because that process was marred by dirt and never carried out in line with the ABC constitution.

“What concerns ABC supporters regarding the manner in which things are being run in the party including the lack of growth, complaints being tabled on social media, lack of confidence in the party structures concerns me as well. I have tried everything in my powers to have my grievances and the grievances of party members addressed. And with all communication channels purposely shut down, I had to speak out my mind before I die and I spoke my mind at the wrong place.

“Being part of the ABC structures, I was never going to keep quiet when the ABC’s founding principles are being disregarded and dragged through the mud by members whom even today I am not satisfied that they have a true understanding of what the ABC is about.”

He said the ABC had an obligation to rescue Lesotho from all the challenges facing this country like corruption but it was unfortunate that such challenges were left unattended.

“Based on the above reasons, I totally disagree that the NEC which I am part of, should suspend me either from the NEC or the party.” This week Mr Maliehe would not be drawn into discussing the letter further except to confirm that the document that the Lesotho Timeshad seen was authentic.

Relentless efforts to get comment from Dr Thabane’s office about the alleged use of State House in discussions of plots to kill Mr Maliehe failed.

The post State House used to plot my death: Maliehe appeared first on Lesotho Times.

Staff Reporter

LETŠENG Diamonds continued with its impressive performance of recovering high quality diamonds, with the latest find being a 138-carat top white colour Type IIa diamond from its mine in Mokhotlong.

Gem Diamonds, which owns 70 percent of Letšeng Diamonds with the remainder held by the government, recently released a statement announcing the latest find.

“Gem Diamonds Limited is pleased to announce the recovery of a 138 carat, top white colour Type IIa diamond from the Letšeng mine in Lesotho, the highest dollar per carat kimberlite diamond mine in the world,” the company said in its statement.

“This is the twelfth diamond of over 100 carats recovered in 2018 and a record for the Company in terms of the number of diamonds of over 100 carats recovered in a year”.

The latest diamond discovery comes after another huge find of a 115-carat stone in May this year.

The finds are the latest in the long line of impressive performances by the Letšeng Mine which also saw the recovery of a 910-carat diamond in January this year.

The 910-carat diamond, which was christened the ‘Lesotho Legend,’ was sold for a staggering US$40 million (M520 million) at an auction in Antwerp in Belgium in March this year.

Letšeng has also recovered a high-value 117 carat diamond and a 110 carat Type IIa diamond this year.

The robust trend continues from that of last year when a 115-carat diamond was recovered in September.

In June 2017, the mine recovered two large diamonds one a high-quality 104.73 carat, D-colour Type IIa diamond and the other a 151.52 carat Type I yellow diamond.

Before that in May 2017, the mine recovered a high-quality 80 carat, D colour Type II diamond, while in April it recovered a 114 carat, D colour Type II diamond of exceptional quality.

There have however, been concerns that despite the huge finds, Lesotho does not realise significant revenue inflows from the sales of its diamonds.

For instance, the government only realised US$3, 2 million for the sale of the 910-carat diamond that was recovered at the Letšeng Mine in January this year.

This is despite the fact that the diamond, which has been dubbed ‘The Lesotho Legend’, is the fifth largest ever recovered in the world and it went on to fetch a whooping US$40 million (about half a billion maloti) at an auction in Antwerp in Belgium.

Finance Minister Moeketsi Majoro told this publication in May this year that although Lesotho would occasionally make massive diamond finds including the ‘Lesotho Legend’, unfavourable contracts that the successive governments negotiated with the mining companies negatively impacted on the earnings that accrued to the state.

He said although the government had negotiated for 10 percent royalties from the sale of diamonds, the state was often forced to settle for as low as eight percent as was the case with the ‘Lesotho Legend’. He said this was because mining companies often pleaded with government to accept a lower percentage in royalties, citing operational costs which reduced their profit margins.

The post Letšeng makes another massive diamond find appeared first on Lesotho Times.

’Marafaele Mohloboli

OPPOSITION parties have finally agreed to participate in the national reforms process after the government agreed to withdraw its application for the extradition of exiled Lesotho Congress for Democracy (LCD) leader, Mothetjoa Metsing.

Democratic Congress (DC) leader and former Prime Minister Pakalitha Mosisili confirmed the opposition’s decision to participate in the reforms process at an emergency press conference that was held yesterday in Maseru.

The opposition’s stance comes in time for them to attend the National Leaders Forum which gets underway today in Maseru.

Mr Mosisili said they had a change of heart after the government agreed to their demands for the withdrawal of its application for the extradition of Mr Metsing from South Africa. The government had applied for Mr Metsing’s extradition to enable him to stand trial for corruption which he allegedly committed during his tenure as deputy prime minister in the previous government.

“Mr Metsing’s return has always been the main priority in our list of demands and it was announced to us by (the head of the SADC facilitation team to Lesotho) Justice Dikgang Moseneke that the extradition would be withdrawn and that he (Mr Metsing) would be afforded the security he needs,” Mr Mosisili said yesterday.

“We were never rebellious but said that we wouldn’t be participating until Metsing’s issue was attended to.”

The opposition’s decision follows yesterday’s meeting with Justice Moseneke in Maseru.

Prior to meeting the opposition, Justice Moseneke had also met Prime Minister Thomas Thabane and other government leaders who agreed to withdraw the extradition request.

The government communicated its decision in a letter which was also copied to South African President Cyril Ramaphosa and Justice Moseneke.

“Further to our letter of the 8^th August 2018 relating to the return to Lesotho of the leader of the Lesotho Congress for Democracy’s leader Mr Mothetjoa Metsing, we wish to kindly inform you that the government undertakes to withdraw the application for his (Mr Metsing’s) extradition filed with the courts of law in South Africa.

“The government will also provide security to Honorable Metsing upon his arrival in Lesotho. The government will assess the threat to his security from time to time and in the event that there is no threat to his security and in consultation with the SADC facilitator, the government shall withdraw his security,” the government stated in its letter to the opposition yesterday.

The government further stated that “these concessions are made in the spirit of brotherhood with a view to ensuring that Metsing participates in the reforms process and be reunited with his family”.

It was on the basis of the government letter that Mr Mosisili said the opposition would participate in the National Leaders Forum “to show our seriousness and commitment towards the reforms”.

Fellow opposition leader Advocate Lekhetho Rakuoane of the Popular Front for Democracy (PFD) said they would participate in the reforms process because some of their demands had been met by the government.

“This is not to say that we are fully satisfied but at least the door has been opened to us unlike when we were left out in the cold. We shall now be able to raise some of our issues from within the process,” Adv Rakuoane said.

The opposition said that it had been also assured that none of their leaders would be arrested during the reforms processes.

The post Opposition end reforms boycott appeared first on Lesotho Times.

Bereng Mpaki

THE government reportedly lost US$130 930 508 (about M1, 83 billion) in three financial years, 2009/10 to 2011/12 due to the failure by the Ministry of Mining to collect taxes from diamond mining companies.

This was revealed during the appearance of Mining ministry officials before the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) and the Natural Resources Committee (NRC) yesterday.

The ministry officials were summoned to appear before the two parliamentary committees to respond to issues emanating from the Auditor General’s report of 2014 concerning the non-collection of sales taxes from diamonds that were sold during that period.

Part of the Auditor General’s report for 2014 audit states that, “Section 17 of The Precious Stones Order No 24 of 1970 stipulates that ‘There shall be paid sales tax on the value of every diamond found in Lesotho and exported therefrom. The rate of sales tax shall be 15 percent of the market value of every diamond or such amount as the minister may from time to time by regulation prescribe”.

“Contrary to that requirement, diamond sales tax was stated at different percentages ranging from 4 percent to 8 percent instead of 15 percent in the mining leases.

“It was further established that mining companies did not pay diamond sales tax at all and sales tax totaling USD 130 930 508 for the three financial years 2009/10 to 2011/12 was due at the time of audit. It was recommended that management (at the Mining ministry) should ensure that all mining companies submit their tax payments evidence, failing which management should take necessary action to ensure that diamond sales tax was duly paid,” the audit report further states.

Commenting on the Auditor General’s report yesterday, the Commissioner of Mines Pheello Tjatja told the parliamentary committees that the Mining ministry has not been collecting diamond sales tax as stipulated by the Precious Stones Order of 1970. He said the ministry had only been collecting royalties as stipulated by the Mines and Minerals Act of 2005.

He said this was due to the assumption that the diamond sales tax provided for by the Precious Stones Order was the same thing as royalties as provided for by the Mines and Minerals Act of 2005.

“We believe that the auditor general did not realise that diamond sales tax is now known as a royalty, meaning that where we have indicated that we collected royalties, it is the same thing as the diamond sales tax,” Mr Tjatja said.

For her part, ‘Mamanti Matekane from the Auditor General’s office said the 1970 Order remained in force as it had never been repealed.

“According to the 1970 Order, the diamonds are evaluated at the mines before they are exported and their value is denoted in US dollar terms. We expect the mines to indicate the value of payable diamond sales tax to the government at that moment. According to the Order, diamond sales tax is charged at a rate of 15 percent.

“Royalties on the other hand, are paid when the mines have sold the diamonds for a definitive sales amount. Section 59 of the Mines and Minerals Act of 2005 indicates that precious stones will be charged at 10 percent while other minerals at three percent,” Ms Matekane said.

PAC chairperson Selibe Mochoboroane said it was unacceptable that the country lost so much money which should have been collected as diamond sales tax and that revenue could have come in handy given the country’s precarious financial position.

“It is clear that the 1970 Order was not repealed and the clauses that were not repealed were left intact because they were still serving their purpose. If the clauses were no longer needed, they would have been repealed and addressed under the Mines and Minerals Act of 2005.

“The existence of two different methods to collect the two taxes, was done purposely to have diamond sales tax at the rate of 15 percent and royalties of 10 percent for precious stones. And we have not been complying with the law. There is a lot of money we should have collected as a country from the mines that we did not.

“Even now when the country’s finances are under pressure, we are refusing to make use of this law that would have helped the country. We therefore ask you to comply with the laws,” Mr Mochoboroane said.

Ntahli Matete, the principal secretary in the ministry of mining promised the committee that his ministry would correct its mistakes as pointed out by the PAC.

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Bereng Mpaki

THE Public Accounts Committee (PAC) has instructed the Ministry of Labour and Employment to temporarily suspend the issuance of work permits to pave way for investigations of alleged fraud by officials in the ministry.

The decision was made when officials from the Ministry of labour and their counterparts from the Ministry of Mining appeared before a joint sitting of the PAC and Natural Resources Committees (NRC). The two ministries were summoned on Monday to answer questions in connection with the fraudulent issuance of work permits to expatriates especially those working for diamond mining companies.

PAC chairperson Selibe Mochoboroane announced the temporary suspension of the issuance of work permits after workers in the mines submitted at least 21 cases in which they alleged that work permits had been issued illegally.

The Labour Code Order of 1992 states that the Labour Commissioner should only grant a foreign national a work permit (also known as a certificate of employment) after it has been established that there are no citizens of Lesotho who are qualified and available for the job in question.

On Monday, the deputy principal secretary of labour, ‘Makhoabane Lelimo, failed to prove that seven applicants out of the 21 cases presented by the workers had the requisite educational qualifications to qualify for the work permits.

In addition, most applicants that had already been issued with work permits only had certificates for completing short courses while some remained in employment and stayed in the country beyond the expiry of their work permits.

Mr Mochoboroane said he suspected the permits currently being processed by the labour ministry were also likely to be issued under fraudulent circumstances.

“Due to the investigations we are conducting as the two parliamentary committees (PAC and NRC), we have decided to suspend the issuance of permits starting Tuesday (21 August) until we have completed the investigations,” Mr Mochoboroane said, adding, “Our suspicion is that even those work permits which are set to be issued anytime from now were processed fraudulently”.

Mr Mochoboroane further said that work permits found to have been fraudulently issued would be canceled after the completion of their investigations.

Prior to the PAC ruling, Lehlohonolo Motlomelo, a worker at the Kao diamond mine in the Butha-Buthe district, said local employees were surprised by the continuous issuance of work permits to foreign nationals when there were locals who had similar or even higher qualifications.

“We see foreigners continuing to come into the country to work in the mines doing the work that Basotho are qualified to do. We cannot understand why the two ministries continue to allow this to happen,” said Mr Motlomelo who is also a member of the Construction and Mine Workers Associations Union (CAMAU).

He further said that some of the migrant workers arrive in Lesotho without the relevant skills for the positions they are given and they eventually get promoted ahead of their local counterparts who would have helped them to learn on the job.

Rapelang Mosae also from CAMAU, cited the example of a South African national who was granted a permit to work as an electrician at Kao Mine when there were locals with the same skills and qualifications.

“We wonder as to how he got that work permit because we have Lerotholi Polytechnic which produces electricians,” Mr Mosae said, adding the mine had also employed foreigners as crane drivers, supervisors, technicians, metallurgists, technicians, human resource and store managers.

He further accused the mine of using underhand tactics to sideline locals thus preventing them from taking over from foreigners once the latter’s contracts expired.

He said whenever foreign nationals’ contracts were about to expire, the mine would re-assign locals to other departments instead of promoting them to replace the foreigners. He said this then enabled the foreigners to get contract extensions on the grounds that there were no locals who could replace them.

Agnes Phatela, who was formerly employed as a diamond evaluator at Kao Mine, told the two parliamentary committees that she was unemployed after the diamond mines overlooked her in favour of foreign nationals.

The post Parly suspends issuance of work permits appeared first on Lesotho Times.

Pascalinah Kabi

THE Directorate on Corruption and Economic Offences (DCEO) has been slapped with an M11 million lawsuit by the director of Hippo Transport, Mohopoli Isaac Monokoane. Mr Monokoane alleges that he was defamed and his company suffered financial losses after the DCEO maliciously leaked a letter it wrote to him in July this year.

Mr Monokoane wants M11 million in damages which has been broken down as M10 million for loss of business and M1 million for the public ridicule he suffered as a result of the DCEO’s “unlawful and wrongful” leakage of the confidential letter. The letter in question was written by the DCEO to him requesting that he make submissions in relation to a 2015 tender that Hippo Transport was awarded by the Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security.

The DCEO said it needed the information as part of its investigations into suspected corruption in the procurement of goods and services by the Ministry of Agriculture in 2015.

Hippo Transport’s core business is the provision of transport solutions and according to its website, it is one of the largest transport companies in Lesotho with a fleet of 92 heavy duty trucks and 21 small trucks.

It also has interests in plant hire, property, tourism and brick manufacturing.

On the 10^th of July this year, the DCEO wrote to Mr Monokoane requesting him to make a full disclosure of all his assets in and outside Lesotho as well as his sources of income within 21 days.

Among other things, the DCEO demanded his bank account details including the name of the bank, the year in which the account was opened, the opening balance, the current balance and any offshore accounts.

In terms of motor vehicles and other movable properties, Mr Monokoa was requested to furnish the DCEO with the registration numbers, engine and vehicle identification numbers. The DCEO also wanted information relating to when the vehicles and movable properties were acquired and how much Hippo Transport paid for them.

Mr Monokoane scribbled a handwritten response on 16 July informing the DCEO that he did not understand English and asked the anti-corruption body to write to him in Sesotho.

A week later, Mr Monokoane’s response was leaked on social media and he alleges that the leakage resulted in him being subjected to public ridicule. He further alleges that the leakage cost him at least M10 million in lost earnings.

Mr Monokoane, through his legal firm Phoofolo Associates Inc., has since filed a lawsuit accusing the DCEO of leaking the letter and he wants to be compensated for the ‘damages’ to his personal and professional reputation.

“This action (lawsuit) is based on the wrongful and unlawful leakage of a confidential letter which was addressed to the 2^nd plaintiff (Mr Monokoane) in respect of a tender which the 1^st plaintiff (Hippo Transport) was awarded by the Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security in 2015,” Mr Monokoane states in his court papers which were filed on 13 August 2018.

“The Defendant (DCEO), as a sensitive and or delicate investigative institution of corruption and economic offences, was duty bound to preserve secrecy of all information which came to the custody and or knowledge of its agents. The plaintiffs specifically plead that notwithstanding the statutory obligation of the defendant, the letter was leaked and eventually displayed on social media and that publication subjected both plaintiffs to ridicule. The confidential contents of the letter were consequently subjected to public display and scrutiny contrary to the Prevention of Corruption and Economic Offences Act No 5 of 1999.

“The 1^st plaintiff specifically pleads that as a result of the defendant’s utter breach of the law, the business of the company was severely compromised leading to significant losses in business and the transactional portfolio of the company was severely compromised as a result thereof.”

Mr Monokoane said the leaking the confidential letter was both wrongful and unlawful and that it was a malicious endeavour on the part of the DCEO who aimed at compromising the business interests and reputation of Hippo Transport.

He said the alleged actions by the DCEO subjected him to public ridicule and demeaning remarks on social media and that adversely tainted his name and good stead and he was therefore aggrieved.

“The 2^nd plaintiff further pleads that the leakage of the confidential letter was and remains a malicious endeavour aimed at lowering him in esteem and for that reason he is compromised in the business circles and seen as a person who does not abide by the laws of the land in spite of the fact that no criminal charges have been laid against him.

“The said wrongful, unlawful and or utter breach of the law by the defendant and or its authorised agents occasioned substantial commercial damages to the 1^st plaintiff and that adversely affected the company’s reputation and business dealings which attracted loss of business and prospective contracts to the tune of M10 000 000. The mentioned monies could have been secured through the business dealings of 1^st plaintiff if it was not for the wrongful and or unlawful acts of the defendant through its agents.

“On the same note, the said wrongful, unlawful and or utter breach of the law by the defendant and or its authorised necessitated and attracted damages to the tune of M1 000 000 owing to the damage caused to the personal reputation of the 2^nd plaintiff. The damage could have been avoided if it was not for the wrongful and or unlawful acts of the defendant through its agents,” Mr Monokoane said.

He said he was forced to approach the courts after the DCEO refused to pay the damages as communicated in a letter of demand to the anti-graft body on 27 July this year.

The post DCEO slapped with M11 million lawsuit appeared first on Lesotho Times.

…denies claims that she was forced to resign after falling out with the First Lady

Pascalinah Kabi

THE Minister of Forestry and Land Reclamation ‘Mamotsie Motsie has resigned with effect from tomorrow due to ill-health.

Ms Motsie yesterday confirmed her resignation in an interview with the Lesotho Times. She also denied rumours that she had been forced to resign after falling out with the First Lady ‘Maesaiah Thabane.

Ms Motsie’s resignation was initially by the office of the Government Secretary, Moahloli Mphaka.

“The office of the Government Secretary wishes to inform the nation and the public that on Wednesday 22 August 2018, the Prime Minister, Thomas Thabane, accepted the resignation of the Honourable Minister of Forestry and Land Reclamation Mamotsie Motsie on grounds of unstable health.

“The Honourable Minister of Trade and Industry Tefo Mapesela will act in the vacancy created by Honourable Motsie’s departure until a new substantive appointment is made.

“Honourable Motsie will remain as a member of the senate, to which she was appointed at the formation of the current coalition government in June 2017,” the government secretary’s office said in the statement that was issued yesterday.

Yesterday, some sources within the ruling All Basotho Convention (ABC) told the Lesotho Times that Ms Motsie was forced to resign from her position after falling out with the First Lady. The sources however, did not say what caused the ‘fallout’.

“Mme Mamotsie is no longer on good terms with the First Lady and she was advised to resign from her ministerial position or risk the embarrassment of being fired like Ntate (Motlohi) Maliehe (who was fired last week from his post as Tourism minister),” one source said.

Another source said Ms Motsie “is no longer considered as a close ally of the First Lady and she had to go”.

Ms Motsie however, refuted allegations of a rift with Ms Thabane. Instead, she said it took her time to come to the decision to resign from the cabinet and that the decision was carefully taken.

“It is true that I resigned and this has nothing to do with the First Lady. I sat down with my family, discussed the matter and they gave me their blessing to resign because of health issues and other family commitments that need my attention given that I am a widow

“People like to spice up every political development in this country and I am not surprised that they are now making up stories about why I resigned. I resigned out of my own volition and my decision was never influenced by anyone expect my family and I. My relationship with the First Lady is still intact and just now (yesterday) we were talking.

“I do not have any reason to lie and if indeed our relationship was sour and had influenced my decision to resign, I would tell you straight away,” Ms Motsie told this publication.

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