• as DC threatens to withdraw its support for Thabane’s ouster

Pascalinah Kabi

THE country’s biggest opposition party, the Democratic Congress (DC) has threatened to withdraw its support for the Professor Nqosa Mahao-led All Basotho Convention (ABC) faction’s no confidence motion against ABC leader and Prime Minister Thomas Thabane.

This in retaliation for the Mahao faction’s refusal to support DC leader Mathibeli Mokhothu’s motion to compel the  government to stop the Independent Electoral Commission (IEC) from reducing the number of rural constituencies during a planned delineation exercise.

The Mahao faction has hit back by accusing the DC of holding a gun to its head to force them to endorse the motion against the IEC. The Mahao faction’s spokesperson, Montoeli Masoetsa, said the DC motion on the IEC was misplaced because the IEC was an independent body with a mandate to delineate constituencies every 10 years.

Mr Masoetsa also claimed that the Mahao faction was negotiating with Deputy Prime Minister Monyane Moleleki for his cooperation in ousting Dr Thabane and they were not prepared to support the DC on the IEC because this could cost them Mr Moleleki’s support.

At the heart of the dispute is the DC’s anger with the Mahao faction over its failure to support its motion to stop the IEC from reducing the number of rural constituencies during its ongoing delimitation exercise.

Mr Mokhothu wanted the motion inserted as a clause in another motion to amend the constitution to clip the prime minister’s powers to prevent him from advising the king to dissolve parliament and call for fresh elections whenever he lost a no confidence vote in parliament.

The motion to amend the constitution was moved in parliament last Tuesday by Popular Front for Democracy (PFD) leader, Lekhetho Rakuoane, and unanimously approved by legislators across the political divide.

However, the DC is unhappy that the motion was accepted without the clause that had been proposed by Mr Mokhothu.

While the DC says it will not abandon its quest to stop the IEC from reducing the number of rural constituencies, is main support base, it has however vowed to punish the Mahao faction for failing to support it.

DC spokesperson Serialong Qoo this week told the Lesotho Times that the DC will not hesitate to withdraw its support for the no confidence motion and “leave them (Mahao faction) out in the cold for Thabane to do as he pleases with them”.

The motion is the culmination of a power struggle in the ABC pitting Dr Thabane against his party deputy, Prof Mahao. The infighting began when Dr Thabane rejected Prof Mahao’s election to the party’s second most powerful post in February 2019 on the grounds that the latter was a newcomer who should not be elected ahead of more seasoned party cadres. And in June 2019, Motebang Koma, the ABC’s Koro-Koro constituency legislator, filed the no confidence motion against Dr Thabane.

Mr Koma, who is one of the ABC legislators backing Prof Mahao, was seconded in the motion by the DC’s deputy leader, Motlalentoa Letsosa.

Parliament had been abruptly adjourned after Mr Koma’s motion was filed to save Dr Thabane from being toppled then and to give him ample time to resolve the power struggle in his fractious party. But after parliament re-opened two weeks ago, the pro-Mahao faction has vowed to push ahead with the no confidence motion.

However, there are no longer any guarantees of the DC support which is crucial to the success of the motion. At least 20 out of the 53 ABC MPs are said to be Mahao supporters but without the DC’s 26 seats, the no confidence motion would not succeed even if it was backed by the rest of the opposition parties. DC spokesperson, Serialong Qoo, said his party will not support the motion unless the Mahao faction supported its own motion to stop the IEC from reducing the number of rural constituencies.

The IEC has a mandate to delineate electoral constituencies every 10 years and  the DC accuses the ABC of arm-twisting the IEC to reduce the number of rural constituencies to undercut the latter’s support in the event of elections being held. The 2017 polls showed that the DC enjoyed more support in the rural areas while the ABC won most of the urban seats. Consequently the DC believes there are attempts by the ABC to ensure the IEC reduces the number of rural constituencies while increasing those in the urban areas on the pretext that many rural dwellers have migrated to the urban areas in the past 10 years. The DC believes this is being done to help the ABC increase its support base in the urban areas.

“We want the government to discipline the IEC by telling it to immediately stop cutting down the number of constituencies in the rural areas and we will to file a motion to compel the government to do that,” Mr Qoo said, adding the IEC had begun reducing the number of rural constituencies on the grounds that many rural dwellers had migrated to the urban areas like Maseru and Maputsoe in search of jobs.

“The IEC is deliberately increasing the number of urban constituencies to ensure that the ABC amasses more votes while killing the DC’s strongholds. The IEC is doing this because they are members of Thabane’s ABC. They are serving the interests of the ABC.”

Mr Qoo said they “will not vote with them (Mahao faction) on the no confidence motion if they refuse to vote with us on this one (motion on the IEC)”.

“We will not support this move (no confidence motion) because it is clear that they are just using us, they see us as their puppets. We meant it when we said he (Dr Thabane) must go but we will not assist people who are not ready to back us up when we need them. We will leave them out in the cold for Thabane to do as he pleases with them,” Mr Qoo said.

However, Mr Masoetsa said the DC was wrong to demand action against the IEC when the law was “very clear that after every 10 years there will be re-demarcation of constituencies”. He also alleged that the Mahao faction was negotiating with Deputy Prime Minister Moleleki for his cooperation in ousting Dr Thabane and they were prepared to jettison the DC over the IEC issue to win Mr Moleleki’s support.

“What do they want us to do when the law is very clear on the delineation of constituencies)?

“The DC wants to negotiate with a gun to our necks and I don’t like this. They should not turn us into monkeys. While we need both Mokhothu and Moleleki (Deputy Prime Minister Monyane Moleleki) to address national issues, we need Moleleki more because he is already in government and he can help us from within. We can make all the noise we want with Mokhothu but if Moleleki does not support our cause, the no confidence motion will not be tabled in parliament.”

Mr Masoetsa said they had given themselves up to the end of November 2019 to conclude all the legal processes towards the ousting of Dr Thabane and the DC had to accept that amending the IEC act to accommodate the DC’s concerns was not a priority.

“The DC has established itself in the rural areas and they are worried that this (delimitation) exercise will hurt them but we cannot entertain this (DC motion on the IEC) at the moment because we have other pressing issues like our talks with Moleleki.

“We have had talks with him and there are ongoing talks where he has put conditions before us and so far we are not agreeing on any of those. Moleleki is the best placed to assist us in addressing national issues at the moment because he is already inside (government).”

Asked what the talks were specifically about and what conditions Mr Moleleki placed before them, Mr Masoetsa said, “It has to be kept secretly among the eight people who were in that meeting”.

“But it is important for me to stress that we need both Moleleki and Mokhothu to address the issues facing this nation. Without both of them, we will not have the required majority to oust Thabane. We are not asking them to solve our ABC internal squabbles but we want them to work with us to address national issues,” Mr Masoetsa said.

Contacted for comment yesterday, Mr Moleleki’s Alliance of Democrats (AD) spokesperson, Thuso Litjobo, said he was not aware of any talks between Mr Moleleki and the Mahao faction aimed at securing the AD’s support for a no confidence vote against Dr Thabane.

He said he was only aware of efforts by Mr Moleleki, Basotho National Party leader, Thesele Maseribane, and Reformed Congress of Lesotho leader, Keketso Rantšo, to mediate between the two ABC factions.

“What I know is that Mokola (Moleleki) is shuttling between the two ABC factions in an effort to bring peace between the factions and ensure that the ABC is ultimately united. Mokola is therefore constantly meeting the two factions but not with the intention to work with either faction or to have Ntate Thabane replaced for,” Mr Litjobo said.

On his part, the IEC spokesperson, Tuoe Hantši, denied that the IEC had reduced the number of rural or other constituencies to favour any political party. He said the delineation exercise was still in the early stages as they were still consulting all the stakeholders and as such it was too early to say how the constituencies would eventually be demarcated. He however, said the IEC was mandated by law to delineate the constituencies and it would be guided in the exercise by the results of the latest national census which was conducted in 2016.

The post No confidence vote in limbo appeared first on Lesotho Times.

Pascalinah Kabi

A PRINCIPAL Secretary has sensationally claimed that First Lady, ‘Maesaiah Thabane, directed that a lucrative M340 million Mpilo Boulevard tender be awarded to controversial Chinese businessman Yan Xie’s UNIK Construction Engineering company.

The Local Government Principal Secretary, Khothatso Tšooana made the claims when he and Maseru City Council Town Clerk, Moeko Maboee, appeared before the Selibe Mochoboroane-led Public Accounts Committee (PAC) yesterday.

Mr Tšooana also claimed that two cabinet ministers, Mahala Molapo (Local Government and Chieftaincy) and Chalane Phori (Small Business Development, Cooperatives and Marketing) also supported the directive.

He said Ms Thabane and the two ministers wanted UNIK awarded the tender to reward its owner, Yan Xie, for assisting Prime Minister Thomas Thabane.

Mr Xie allegedly offered financial assistance to Dr Thabane and members of All Basotho Convention (ABC) party during their time in exile in South Africa during the political instability from 2015 to 2017.

Popularly known as John, Mr Xie is Dr Thabane’s Head of Special Projects and his Special Envoy and Trade Advisor on the China-Asia Trade Network.

The Mpilo Boulevard tender was first advertised in April 2019 and among other things, the successful bidder is expected to construct new road links, flyover bridges for vehicles as well as pedestrian bridges.

It is envisaged that when complete, the new look Mpilo Boulevard will reduce traffic congestion in the city and also reduce carnage on the roads.

And in the latest turn of events yesterday, Messrs Tšooana and Maboee told PAC that they were pressured to award the lucrative tender to UNIK Construction.

According to Mr Tšooana, Ms Thabane and the two ministers delivered the order in a meeting at State House, Maseru on 15 October 2019. This was just three days before the MCC’s tender board met to study the tendering evaluation report before deciding the winning bid.

Mr Tšooana however, absolved Dr Thabane of any wrongdoing, saying although he attended the meeting, the premier advised them against any improper conduct and instead told them to “go and do the right thing” by awarding the tender to the deserving bidder.

“We got a message to report to State House,” Mr Tšooana told the PAC.

“It was on a Tuesday (15 October 2019) and the minister (Molapo) left the cabinet meeting and we all met at State House. We were called upstairs and we found the First Lady, the honourable prime minister and Minister Chalane Phori. We sat down and listened and Ntate Phori is the one who narrated everything.

“He (Mr Phori) said he always listens when the leader (Dr Thabane) tells him to do things and the decisions of the leader must be respected. He then explained that UNIK assisted the leader and the ABC when life was difficult, especially when the leader stayed in Ficksburg. He (Mr Phori) then said that UNIK should be given the tender. He said Yan Xie, the owner of the company (UNIK), had assisted the prime minister’s family. He was seconded by the First Lady that Mr Yan must be awarded the tender. Minister Mahala also seconded this,” Mr Tšooana said.

He said the First Lady then left the meeting to go and have her animals vaccinated. He said that Dr Thabane remained behind and narrated how he was once offered a lot of money by an unnamed European during his time as a civil servant.

“He (Dr Thabane) told us that he told the white man to keep his money and leave. He said the white man said to him, ‘you are a fool’. He (Dr Thabane) then told us to also ‘go and do the right thing and know that will make me happy’.

“He told us, ‘Do not take a bribe’. The meeting was then adjourned and we left,” Mr Tšooana said.

He said he subsequently met with Chief Molapo and told the minister that they would do as the prime minister had instructed. However, Chief Molapo ordered him to go against Dr Thabane’s orders and do everything to ensure the tender was awarded to UNIK.

Mr Tšooana said he and Chief Molapo held another meeting with Mr Maboee who also reminded the minister of Dr Thabane’s orders for them to avoid an impropriety in the awarding of the tender.

“The minister (Chief Molapo) was not happy with our statements. But I told the town clerk (Mr Maboee) to go and do the right thing as the prime minister had instructed. The tender was not awarded to UNIK,” Mr Tšooana said.

On his part, Mr Maboee, who had initially requested to testify in private due to the sensitivity of the matter, told the PAC that he also attended the meeting at the State House.

“I attended the meeting with PS Tšooana, Minister Molapo, Minister Phori, the prime minister and the first lady. Minister Phori told us that there were people who assisted ministers and the ABC and we should look at those people with a merciful eye when we award the tender for the Mpilo project. The suggestion was that we should award the tender to UNIK. UNIK was one of the nine companies which tendered for the job,” Mr Maboee said.

He alleged that Chief Molapo said they must assist UNIK to win the tender. Mr Maboee however, differed with his principal secretary on the role of the First Lady in the 15 October 2019 meeting at the State House. He said the First Lady sat in the meeting and never uttered a word.

“Towards the end of the meeting, the prime minister told us to go and do the right thing. He told us not to take any bribes. The messages from the ministers and the prime minister were different in that the prime minister said to do the right thing and we should come back and report that we had done the right thing.

“When the prime minister has spoken, we must do as he tells us and we did just that. You will realise from the evaluation report that UNIK did not make it. Together with my panel, we did the right thing unless proved otherwise,” Mr Maboee said.

He said he was however, surprised to receive a letter from the Director General of the Directorate on Corruption and Economic Offenses (DCEO), Mahlomola Manyokole, ordering the MCC to immediately stop the processes of awarding the tender.

He said that he had furnished the DCEO with all documents relevant to this tender when the now suspended DCEO Chief Investigations Officer, Thabiso Thibeli, was still in office and he was surprised that Adv Manyokole did not use those documents and instead ordered him to again hand over all documents relating to the tender. Last week, Adv Manyokole ordered the MCC to stop the processes of awarding the Mpilo Boulevard tender pending investigations to determine if the tendering process has been above aboard.

Mr Mochoboroane adjourned the hearing immediately after the sensational claims by Messrs Tšooana and Maboee. He said the adjournment was to allow for a 15 day cooling off period.

Minister Molapo’s mobile phone rang unanswered when the Lesotho Times contacted him for comment yesterday. On the other hand, Ms Thabane could not be reached as she is away on an official trip to Canada.

Yesterday, the Lesotho Times interviewed Mr Phori who denied any wrong-doing. He however, told this publication that in addition to being a minister, he was also a businessman and he had jointly bid for the Mpilo tender with UNIK.

He said went to the State House not as a minister but as a businessman to ask Dr Thabane to intervene in the matter after realising that his company – Tsoapos Brick Works – was allegedly being victimised by the Local Government ministry. He said Tsoapos Brick Works tendered for the job in partnership with UNIK.

“These men (Messrs Tšooana and Maboee) are telling the truth mixed with lies. Such a meeting took place. The honourable prime minister was not well. I found ‘M’e Maesaiah nursing him. I went there as Chalane Phori the contractor not the minister,” Mr Phori said.

He said has been a contractor with 20 years and his company operates as a sub-contractor working under companies such as Matekane Group of Companies and TIM JV which was formed by Toloane Matekane after the latter branched out of the Matekane Group.

He said he declared his assets when he was appointed Small Business Minister in 2017 and it was therefore important for people to understand that he is both a minister and a businessman.

“When Ntate Toloane Matekane branched out to form his own company called TIM, he introduced me to a company called UNIK and we worked there together. In 2017, we tendered for the Maputsoe road construction job through UNIK and we had the highest score.

“The contract was however, awarded to a company which came fifth and we don’t know why. I was a minister but still I didn’t complain. We have also tendered for the Mpilo job but we were not awarded the contract despite that we were number one. What annoys me here is the element of corruption that I have picked; that element of corruption made me to go to State House,” Mr Phori said.

He produced a document which appeared to show that UNIK’s tendering price for the Mpilo job was M348 322 542, 52 million while that of another company, Shanxi Construction Company, was M379 036 817, 98. He said Shanxi was the Local Government ministry’s preferred bidder for the Mpilo tender.

He said this forced him to go to State House to ask Dr Thabane to intervene because his company was being victimised for the second time by the same ministry in two years.

“I am an ABC member. I decided not to go to the media but to go to the leader (Dr Thabane) because the ABC is part of the coalition government. What I expected to do? I wanted the leader to intervene and order those people to do the right thing. What they (Messrs Tšooana and Maboee) are saying is partly true because in the meeting the leader ordered us to go and do the right thing,” Mr Phori said.

The post PS implicates First Lady in dodgy M340 million tender appeared first on Lesotho Times.

Scrutator is angry. Really angry. I sold four sheep, two goats and six chicken to the person who was given a contract to cater for His Majesty’s 56^th birthday. I also sold 10 chickens, one goat and two sheep to a company awarded a tender to cater for a surreptitious event recently held for Ntate Motsoahae and Lady Dee in Mokhotlong. They were donating a shack they built for a homeless fellow in that far flung and God forsaken town called Mokhotlong. All in all, these two caterers owe me about M16 000.  This might not feel and sound like real money for you. It is however a fortune for me. That kind of money cannot of course buy me a holiday in Mauritius. But it can at least afford me a plump holiday in another place called Thaba-Nchu just across the border. However, getting this money has become akin to panning for gold in Scotland. I cannot get paid because the people to whom I sold my wares haven’t also been paid by the government.

In a fit of rage, I recently stormed Ntate Moeketsi Majoro’s office to demand payment.  I asked our IMF trained finance minister to pay the two women who were given these tenders so that they can in turn give me my dues.

I was shocked by Ntate Majoro’s response. For starters, I did not know that Ntate Majoro actually takes snuff. He was courteous enough to accept me into his office. He was also courteous enough to listen to my story. But then instead of him helping me recover my money he looked at me and remarked: “Thanks Mme for coming. I have listened to you. But you see , I have bigger worries…You see all those files in that corner, they represent the amount of money that I as finance minister, one behalf of the coalition, owe to various government suppliers.”

He continued: “ The orange files represent companies or persons who are each owed more than M5 million each by the government….the green files represent persons that are owed more than  M10 million each, the orange files represent companies owed more than M20 million each while the red files represent companies that are owed more than  M50 million each…..

“All these are big amounts. But none of these people have ever woken me up early in the morning to ask me for their money as you are doing. We as government owe our suppliers huge amounts — big and small.

“We will of course pay small debtors like you. But not now. We don’t have the money.  We will pay our big debts first, then we will consider small minnows like you latter. Now leave my office to let me do my work Mme….Never call me again over a measly M16 000…..”

Ntate Majoro then opened a small metal container and squeezed a sizeable amount of snuff between his fingers before sneezing it loudly down his left nostril as if this was his way of paying his big debts first.  This all reminded me of Unoka in Chinua Achebe’s Things Fall Apart.  Unoka became infamous for not paying debts. By the time he died, he had not only entangled his family into humungus debts, he had become the epitome and embodiment of the word debt itself.

As I walked out of Ntate Majoro’s office, I could not help but ask myself; Where do I go from here? I know I will not be welcome at State House. I am no longer a crony there.

Perhaps I should just write off this debt. But then, I need my Thaba-Nchu holiday. Where will I ever get the money to get there, if I don’t pursue Ntate Majoro? I will not give up, I decided. If I don’t get the money next week, I will go and camp at Ntate Majoro’s home till I get paid.

I know most other Basotho who have provisioned services to the government are also reeling.  Which is why I am flabbergasted and dumfounded by news that the government has blown out more than M200 million on foreign trips and various other junkets by ministers and principal secretaries in a short space of eight months.

Granted, Ntate Majoro is swimming in debt, on behalf of the government, but he at least is a decent man, his mistreatment of me notwithstanding. He warned his colleagues to be frugal much earlier on. He cautioned against unnecessary travel and exhorted his colleagues to travel economy class and by taxi on short trips to South Africa. But they are all having none of that. I have seen Ntate Majoro himself on many occasions leaving his favourite joint (Lancers) and hiking home in a 4 plus one. If all ministers were like him, perhaps we will be in much better space.

Our ministers and principal secretaries are now like permanent tourists hopping from one country to another. They every now and then visit Lesotho to attend cabinet meetings then leave for their respective foreign destinations.  This is not just a per diem syndrome. It is something worse than that. I don’t know how to describe it. Little wonder that service delivery has completely screeched to a halt.

One minister is now known to attend the official opening of every new stokvel in South Africa.

How can any serious government, interested in the welfare of its people, spend a staggering M200 million on foreign travel in a short space of eight months? What’s going on here?

According to Selibe Mochoboroane, our hardworking and indefatigable chairman of the all too important Public Accounts Committee (PAC), the government is spending an average M25 million monthly on lavish foreign travels which brings little to emaciated Basotho.

And to bankroll all the lavish foreign travels, the government has had to dip into the contingent account; that money that should only be used for life saving emergencies.

If all this is not shameful, then what is? Even as I write this article, only about four or five ministers are actually in the country.  Many others are spread across the world from Johanneburg to Kathmandu and from Perth to Peru.

If all these trips brought back massive investments and jobs, then no Basotho would be unemployed. The over-congested road to Kubetsoana would also have been dualized in the South Korean style (wherein highways r are built on top of each other).   It is not encouraging at all that, instead of leading by example by spending more time in Habia,  Ntate Motsoahae is even more delinquent having overshot his travel budget by  M12 million already.  As I write this article, I am told he is somewhere in far flung Montenegro or Serbia.  For what? What the hell is happening here.

How does this government explain all this extravagance? Only recently, a high powered delegation of 30 officials was sent to the United Nations General Assembly at a whooping cost of M5 million. The delegation was double that send by Nigeria, a country with a population a 120 million more times than Lesotho’s.  How surely does any serious government take money from its contingent reserves and use this on foreign travel? According to Mme Maleshoane Lekomola, the budget controller, at least M90 million was spent without parliamentary approval in what she describes as “one of those political decisions”.  Do we thus need a budget controller at all? Nope.

Future Prime Minister Mochoboroane is right in demanding that those responsible for this unashamed looting be held accountable.  It’s illegal to expend public money without parliamentary approval. My support for this government on June 3 2017 is well documented. I did not make my vote a secret. But frankly speaking, I am now disappointed. Ntate Motsoahae had let me down. This has been one of the most incompetent governments Lesotho has ever had. There is no service delivery. The economy is comatose. Unemployment is about to outstrip that of Zimbabwe.  Health and Education standards have declined.  And above all else, I am owed my M16 000. Where do I turn to recover this money. I am told for me to sue the government to recover the M16 000, I would have to spend at least M150 000 on lawyers. Unless I get Advocate Huuoooane. So whats the point.  I am a woman of humble needs. I am not asking for much. I just want my money for an inexpensive holiday in Thaba-Nchu. I am not even asking for Bloemfontein.

And while all the rot is unfolding and money being spent recklessly, those who cannot join in the foreign junkets are simply stealing and getting away with it.

It is now common cause that the Lesotho Mounted Police Service (LMPS) and the so called Directorate on Corruption and Economic Offences (DCEO) are completely useless institutions with not even a single conviction of anyone on corruption.

Consider the case of the crooks who stole M32 million from Lerotholi Polytechnic aka Fokothi.   Deputy Police Commissioner Paseka Mokete even told PAC that the money was laundered into South African accounts.  The chief suspect in the case, one Nosi Motale, is even known to the police.  He had even pledged to return about M16 million for now. And then presumably keep another M16 million and return it when he feels like.  But as fate would have it, nothing has been returned.    If law enforcement agencies fail to prosecute such an obvious case, is there need to have them at all?

I am truly, truly and really disappointed. But with Ntate Mochoboroane doing his work, I see some hope for the future.  And with elections around the corner, maybe we might just get some respite. I never lose hope in His Majesty’s majestic Kingdom. But for now, I am angry and disappointed.

Ache!!!

The post Where do I turn to now? appeared first on Lesotho Times.

Bataung Moeketsi

THE Public Officers’ Defined Contribution Pension Fund (PODCPF) beat Namibia’s Government Institutions Pension Fund (GIPF) in both ladies’ and men’s soccer in the 2019 Interpensions Games at LCS Ground on Saturday.

The hosts also prevailed in mixed volleyball and ladies’ netball at the LCS courts.

The sides however, drew nil-all in the ladies 10-minute soccer. Lesotho eventually won the game 2-1 in penalties.

In the men’s game, Namibia took the lead in the first half and Lesotho equalised early in the second half. Namibia went on to score their second goal towards the end of the match but Lesotho again levelled matters before the final whistle.

The winner had to be decided with penalties and Lesotho prevailed 3-1.

It was a heated affair during the mixed volleyball match as the two sides quarrelled over scores as some thought some scores were illegitimate but Lesotho emerged 2-1 winners.

In the last event, Lesotho eased to a 13-8 win over the visitors in the ladies’ netball.

PODCPF’s acting principle officer Makoa Macheli said the event was meant to create a platform for pension funds’ knowledge sharing and while also fostering an arena for employee welfare.

He said the platform enabled them to build an employee support system through shared experiences.

“We also have to be mindful of the integration that has been in existence for so many years in our region, the likes of the South African Customs Union (SACU) have taught us that we need each other for our development in many areas,” Macheli said.

The guests were also taken for a tour of the iconic Thaba Bosiu on Saturday morning.

GIPF’s Darold Sharor was rewarded at a gala dinner at ‘Manthabiseng Convention Centre later that evening for reaching the peak and descending to the foot of the mountain first.

Gottlieb Maruseb received a medal for being the oldest Namibian to reach the top of Thaba Bosiu.

Other recipients of gold and silver medals included members of the teams who participated in the games. Team Lesotho retained the trophy they won in Namibia in 2017.

GIPF’s Melody Mogane-Tiboth said she was unhappy with the dilapidated LCS netball and volleyball facilities and the lack of nearby restrooms.

“The netball game was played on a dangerous court,” Mogane-Tiboth said.

The Lesotho government adopted the pension fund scheme in 2008 and began with approximately M600 million in investments.

Sempe Moshoeshoe, the PODCPF corporate secretary and head of legal and compliance said they were still in their infancy as compared to their Namibian counterparts in terms of assets and management.

“We hope that through our interactions we will build and learn a lot from GIPF in terms of how you have progressed in this pension fund industry,” Adv Moshoeshoe said.

PODCPF currently has M6.7 billion worth of investments and has 36 000 members.

The post Lesotho outshines Namibia in Interpensions games appeared first on Lesotho Times.

Moorosi Tsiane

THE performance of local athletes in Sunday’s Soweto Marathon is proof that the country must start planning for the future.

This was said by Lesotho Amateur Athletics Association (LAAA) public relations officer Sejanamane Maphathe after two female and three male Basotho athletes finished in the top 10 of the Soweto Marathon on Sunday.

In the female category Lineo Chaka (2:57:58) and Ntebaleng Letsela (3:00:40) finished eighth and 10^th respectively.

Ramolefi Motsieloa (2:19:22) finished fifth while Lebenya Nkoka (2:19:36) finished sixth. Jobo Khatoane (2:20:53) came ninth in the male category.

Ethiopian Debeko Dakamo Dasa (2:18:35) won the male category while South African Irvette Van Zyl (2:34:01) won the female category for the fourth successive time. They each pocketed M250 000.

David Maru (2:18:48) of Kenya and Refera Merga Madesa (2:18:57) of Ethiopia came second and third in the male category. Ethiopians Selam Abere Alebachew (2:45:54) and Gadise Getachew (2:48:19) were second and third in the male category.

Maphathe said while local athletes’ performances were “not bad”, the race’s times have continued to improve and locals have struggled to match East Africans.

“They did their best and their performances were not bad at all considering the times recorded in past years,” Maphathe said.

“We have actually won the race registering similar times but the winning times have also improved and I think our athletes are struggling to keep up with the East Africans.

“There were times when we would dominate the top-five of the race and our athletes were now being scrutinised. Our last athlete to win the race was Tšepo Mathibelle in 2017 while Teboho Noosi finished third last year, so we are not that bad.”

Maphathe said it was however, time to start recruiting athletes who will take over from the current crop as most of them are ageing.

“We must recruit because most of our top athletes are now old and we need new faces. From those who ran last Sunday, I think it is only Mathibelle, Ramolefi and Khatoane who have competed in the race less than five times while the rest have been running in the competition for many years.

“Most are approaching 40 years so they have done their part and we must get new athletes.

“When we go into these races, we must send a huge pool of runners so that we bank on multiple athletes. If one struggles, there will still be who can do the job,” Maphathe said.

The post We must recruit more athletes-Maphathe appeared first on Lesotho Times.

Moorosi Tsiane

PREPARATIONS are on course for the country to host the 2019 Zone 4.5 under-16 Chess Championship from 22 to 30 November 2019 at Blue Mountain Inn in Teyateyaneng.

The championship falls under the African Chess Confederation under the auspices of the International Chess Federation.

Chess Federation of Lesotho (CFL) spokesperson Selatela Khiba recently told the Lesotho Times that the upcoming tournament has an Olympiad setup where all teams would field five players. At least two of the players must be female while one must be a reserve.

“The event has a set up that is similar to that of an Olympiad because there will be five players, of which at least two must be female and one must be a reserve,” Khiba said.

“It also has a team captain or manager and the players collect individual points for the team.”

Khiba said out of 10 countries in the region, six have so far confirmed their participation.

“There are 10 countries in this zone but only six have confirmed participation although we still expect more.

“Chess has grown steadily after getting a positive reception from the country and I think this tournament came at the right time when we had just introduced the sport in the primary schools’ curriculum.

“It is not always easy to transport players to tournaments outside the country but now that we are playing at home, it will be much easier. The sport has improved immensely,” he said.

Khiba said as much as they are ready to host the tournament, finances remain a challenge.

“We have received some money from the international federation to host the event while the LSRC and other sponsors have also promised to come on board. We are waiting for the sponsors to fulfill their pledges so that we can increase our prizes. If they do not fulfill their pledges, we will still run the competition but with smaller prizes,” he said.

Khiba however, said now they would concentrate on preparing their teams for the tournament to ensure that they perform well considering that they are playing at home.

“We are holding a closed tournament this coming weekend at Scenery Guest House where at least six boys and four girls will be selected for the teams.

“The contestants have played well in the High Schools’ Chess Championships and some have played well in the 2019 Juniors Chess Championship,” Khiba said.

The post Preps on course for Zone 4.5 chess tourney appeared first on Lesotho Times.

Moorosi Tsiane

THE country’s most decorated team, Matlama, halted leaders Bantu’s winning streak, holding them to a one-all draw at Setsoto Stadium on Sunday.

Bob Mafoso’s charges have been rampant this season and went into the last weekend tie on the back of six straight wins.

Despite the weekend draw, A Matšo Matebele are at the summit of the league table with 19 points from seven matches. Matlama on the other hand, are second with 14 points after the same number of matches.

Bantu were first off the mark through a Litšepe Marabe strike but Tse Putsoa levelled matters from a Jane Thabantšo spot kick in the second half.

In the first match at Setsoto Stadium, Lioli bagged a hard earned 2-1 win over Sefotha-fotha courtesy of a Tsietsi Motseare brace.

Relebohile Mosebo scored Sefotha-fotha’s consolation.

Tse Nala are now sixth with 11 points after seven matches while Sefotha-fotha are 12^th with five points from seven matches.

Lijabatho registered their first win of the season beating struggling Swallows 0-2 at Ratjomose Ground.

Striker Retšelisitsoe Mopeli scored a brace for the league newcomers compounding his former employers’ woes.

The win saw Mahala move to 11^th with seven points from eight matches while Swallows anchor the table with four points from eight outings.

Liphakoe’s long wait for their first win of this season continued after they held on song LMPS to a goalless draw at PTC Ground.

The Quthing outfit remained in the red sitting 13^th with four points after eight matches. Simunye on the other hand, have collected 11 points in eight matches to sit seventh on the log.

Kick4Life shared spoils with Lifofane on Saturday after a goalless draw. Kick4Life remained in fifth with 12 points while Lifofane also maintained the top four spot with 14 points from eight matches.

LCS regained their mojo edging old foes LDF 2-1. Motheo Mohapi’s charges let their lead slip as the home side snatched the win.

LDF had found the lead through a Letlatsa Moshoeshoe strike but Keketso Snyders cancelled it later in the first half before James Mothotjeloa stole the win for Masheshena in the second half.

Sohle-Sohle as LDF are popularly known, failed to break into the top eight and settled on ninth with eight points from eight matches. LCS are third with 14 points from eight matches.

The post Matlama halt Bantu appeared first on Lesotho Times.

Moorosi Tsiane

LDF coach Motheo Mohapi has questioned his charges commitment following a string of poor results in the Econet Premier League.

Affectionately known as Sohle-Sohle, LDF are ninth with eight points after eight matches.

The army side has only registered one win and has lost twice and drawn five times; its poorest start to a season.

The country’s second most successful team with eight titles registered its second loss last weekend falling 2-1 to LCS.

A furious Mohapi told the Sunday Express that he no longer knew what to do.

“I think we have tried everything to ensure that the team wins but it looks like it hasn’t worked,” Mohapi said.

“We prepare them in the best way possible but it is clear that even if you take the donkey to the river, you cannot make it drink.”

The no-nonsense coach said he is aware of his players’ potential adding that it was unacceptable that they were struggling to get results.

“I know my players. I know what they can do when they are in the right state of mind. We have tried to push them…but it is clear that they are not committed,” Mohapi said.

Six to six as Mohapi is popularly known in football circles, said during their pre-season preparations, they went as far as getting a psychologist for the team but it failed to yield results.

“In our pre-season, we hired a psychologist and called our former players who have a rich history with this team to talk to them. We did this because we wanted to motivate them but we are in this position because they lack commitment.

“We tried to prepare them in every possible way. We tried all different things that could help us but look at how we are losing matches,” Mohapi said.

The post Mohapi fumes over poor results appeared first on Lesotho Times.

Moorosi Tsiane

TAEKWONDO star Michelle Tau continued to fly the country’s flag high after winning gold in the Wattwil Open 2019 in Switzerland last Saturday.

Tau, who came second at the African Games in Morocco in August 2019, said she has been impressed by her performance since returning to the Taekwondo Competence Centre in Friedrichshafen, Germany early this year.

Since August this year, the multitalented Tau has won two gold medals in different competitions and says she is proud of her performance.

“Since the African Games there is now more pressure than before,” Tau said.

“I have participated in two tournaments after the African Games and got gold in each outing. These are performances that I am proud of and I know a lot more still needs to be done.”

The 2017 Face of Lesotho beauty queen said she needs to practice more for growth.

“Although I am happy, I am not yet where I want to be. I still need more practice and to grow. Experience is very important, so I have been using my past mistakes to improve.”

Ranked fourth in Africa, Tau said although she missed out on her target of winning the World Championship this year, she is happy that she came close and is inspired to do more.

“I so badly wanted to win the World Championship in May this year but it was my first time participating at that stage and I failed. My next target was a gold medal in the African Games but unfortunately, I came second. However, I am happy because it shows how close I am to where I want to be and that is surely an inspiration,” Tau said.

She said now she has shifted her focus to the Olympic qualifiers and is aiming to be the first Mosotho to win an Olympic medal.

“My focus is now on qualifying for the 2020 Olympics and represent Lesotho in Tokyo. I pray that God makes what seems impossible possible. Maybe I can become the first Mosotho to win an Olympic medal. I want to become an Olympic medalist in 2020,” she said.

Tau said she was grateful to her family for its support including financially.

“The support from my family has been good because my mother is the one who is paying for my stay here in Germany because I haven’t received any financial help from the Lesotho National Olympic Committee (LNOC),” Tau said.

The post Tau bags Swiss gold appeared first on Lesotho Times.

Moorosi Tsiane

THE Likuena technical team has been extremely cautious not to stretch the players in the senior national soccer team’s preparations for the trip to Sierra Leone for the Africa Cup of Nations qualifier next Wednesday.

The side will return to host the Super Eagles of Nigeria at Setsoto Stadium four days later.

Lesotho Football Association (LeFA) information officer Mikia Kalati yesterday told the Lesotho Times that the technical team has been very cautious in its preparations.

Kalati said in preparation for the two matches, the side travelled to Johannesburg yesterday and played GladAfrica Championship side and Nedbank Cup champions, TS Galaxy.

He however, said while they were hard at work, the coaches have been cautious not to stretch the players in the knowledge that most of them have had busy schedules in the last two weeks. He said the technical team is doing all they can to ensure that they give the players time to recover.

“As part of the preparations, the team played a friendly against TS Galaxy today (yesterday) and they will probably be back in the country tomorrow (today) morning,” Kalati said.

“On arrival they will rest and are expected to leave the country on Saturday.

“The technical team has tried to work on the players’ recovery. The last two weeks have been busy and some players showed signs of fatigue. So, the programme has been more about recovery this week. They also had a swimming pool session on Monday when they got into camp.”

Kalati said Likuena coach Thabo Senong was impressed with Bloemfontein Celtic striker Motebang Sera, who has scored twice in consecutive in recent matches against SuperSport United and Highlands Park.

He added that the trio of Sera, Tumelo Khutlang and Tshwarelo Bereng (both Black Leopards) would join the rest of the team at the airport on Sunday en route to Free Town, Sierra Leone.

“The team leaves the country on Saturday, sleep in Johannesburg and fly out to Free Town on Sunday. The trio of Sera, Bereng and Khutlang will join the rest of the team at the airport as their teams have weekend fixtures. They would have wanted to leave earlier but they couldn’t as they had to wait for the three players.

“The coach is happy that both Sera and Bereng have been getting some game time at their respective clubs. Sera has also been scoring and that will boost their confidence going into the upcoming matches. He had also requested that Khutlang be released in time from their club but the Leopards coach said there were certain things he was assessing on him hopefully, he will also start playing for his team,” Kalati said.

Motlomelo Mkhwanazi and Nkoto Masoabi who play for Tshakhuma Tsha Madzivhandila and Royal Kings joined the team on Monday.

Kalati also said Matlama defender John Mohai has been dropped from the team due to an injury and has been replaced by Liphakoe’s Thabo Matšoele.

The post ‘Likuena coaches cautious’ appeared first on Lesotho Times.

Bataung Moeketsi

SESOTHO Media and Development (SMD) recently afforded 23 filmmakers a platform to showcase their talent at the ninth edition of the Lesotho Film Festival (LFF).

The festival ran from 30 October to 2 November 2019 under the theme #TellingAfricanStories.

The festival screened 26 films at the National University of Lesotho (NUL), the State Library, Café What, Machabeng College, Limkokwing University of Creative Technology and Alliance Françoise.

SMD is a non-governmental organisation (NGO) which aims to grow the festival into a national platform to “view and review development dialogues through the camera lenses of Basotho and international producers”.

Senate Pitso, the festival’s coordinator, told the Weekender the entries for the festival were submitted from April to September 2019.  The winning entries were selected by Mannini Mokhothu, Michael Motaung and Goitumetswe Moseki.

“Every year the LFF team invites local independent juries who may be artists, writers and filmmakers to judge the submitted films,” Pitso said.

“Films are selected according to how they contribute and influence change in Lesotho.”

Ms Pitso hailed the improvement in the quality of submissions this year while the number of local entries also improved.

SMD received 36 local and six international submissions. From these, 26 of were selected.

Pitso however, said they faced serious problems with the poor sound of some of the submissions. She however, said they would next month host a master class on sound engineering and script development.

The class will be held in Morija on 3 and 4 December and will be facilitated by Mosotho filmmaker Pheello Makosholo. Pitso said the applications for the 10 master class spots were already open and would close on 14 November.

The festival ended with an awards ceremony where four filmmakers received golden horn awards for their exceptional work.

Realeboha Mokhabi received the Best Short Film Award for Nyamatsana, The Hub received the Jury Award for their Lesotho music video, Zambian director Paul Luanga Jr received the Best Documentary Film award for Palesa and Khauhelo Lephema received the Best Lesotho Film award for The Curse.

Lephema said winning the award would motivate more people who look up to him.

“Winning the Best Lesotho Film Award means that people who look up to me will be motivated and that is where my excitement comes from,” Lephema said.

The post SMD hosts film fest appeared first on Lesotho Times.

Mohalenyane Phakela

ESCORTING business mogul, Sam Matekane, from Moshoeshoe I Airport to MGC Park in Maseru this week is Pitso ‘Bikerboy’ Ntsukunyane’s most memorable moment.

The opportunity came after years of dreaming to just see Matekane at close range and as fate would have it, his Bikerboy Motorcycle Riding company was this week booked to escort Mr Matekane on his arrival from Canada.

Matekane was recently honoured with a Business Excellence Award by the Canada- Africa Chamber of Business and the Lesotho government.

The 22-year-old was among four riders who lead the Matekane Group of Companies (MGC) boss’ Range Rover while other bikes followed the vehicle. The bikers would perform different stunts while constantly revving their superbikes producing those unmistakable sounds that catch the attention of adrenaline junkies.

Bikerboy told the Weekender this week that escorting Matekane was his biggest booking since he started his company in 2017.

“I regard Matekane as my role model and I have always wanted to get close to him,” Bikerboy said.

“I want my company to be as big as his MGC and I have always wanted to get close to him just to draw inspiration from his body language.

“It was an ineffable feeling when I got a call to provide the escort services to an icon such as Ntate Matekane. Although we did not have the chance to talk much, I could pick from that short conversation that he is a humble person whom, within that busy moment; still made time to chat with the guests at the reception held upon his arrival at MGC.

“This was the first time my company was booked by MGC and I consider it the greatest milestone. I have provided this kind of service before to other prominent people but I am most excited about the Matekane gig because of the man’s passion for business.”

Bikerboy has provided escort services to many prominent people among them former prime minister Pakalitha Mosisili and the current deputy Prime Minister Monyane Moleleki and Gender, Sports, Youth and Recreation minister Mahali Phamotse.

Bikerboy Motorcycle Riding was launched on 7 August 2017, landing small gigs at weddings, funerals and political rallies among others. Its first big gig was providing entertainment at Econet’s Kwese TV launch in Maseru in 2017.

His business has grown. Having started off with a riding club, the Lithabaneng biker provides lessons to biking beginners and he recently started bike repairs and selling riding gear.

Bikerboy told the Weekender that his passion for business and dedication to motorbikes has aided its growth and he is still aiming higher.

“Riding started as a hobby since I was 13 years old and when I decided to make it a business two years ago, it was because I was passionate about it. I believe in always respecting the clients’ expectations and being punctual has worked as a charm. I am humbled by the support Basotho have given me.

“I am going to work hard for my company to grow and reach a point where it can be booked to provide services even beyond the borders,” Bikerboy said.

The post Bikerboy chuffed to meet mogul Matekane appeared first on Lesotho Times.

SINCE his appointment as government spokesperson last year, Nthakeng Selinyane has had to wither numerous storms particularly in the form of attacks from different sections of the political divide. Some have also called his office redundant arguing that it is duplication of duties with those of the Government Secretary or that of the Prime Minister’s Press Attaché.

Lesotho Times (LT) senior reporter ‘Marafaele Mohloboli sat down with Mr Selinyane (NS) this week to discuss the functions of his office and other related issues. Below are excerpts of the interview.

LT: What is the function of the government spokesperson’s office in relation to the public? How does it relate to Prime Minister’s Spokesperson or Press Attaché?

NS: The titles speak for themselves. One is a liaison between the media and Prime Minister while the other represents the government to the nation and the world. One services one office while the other has a universal or global scope. With the office of the government’s spokesperson, accountability is emphasised as the central precept of democracy which I think should be comprehended as going for the relations between the government and the public across the spectrum.

We must recognise the inalienable and undisputable right of the public to know how the state affairs are being conducted at every turning point, and understand that the office of the spokesperson can only do representation, say what the owners of the office, being the cabinet and the PM wish to project as a position of the government on any issue.  That is an office which by definition does not have any right of opinion or expression of opinion on matters of public affairs. It is called upon to advice the bearers of the mantle of the state and that advice might not be divulged, because it is given in confidence; and whether it is used or not used cannot be said publicly by the holder of the office.

This is an expressly political office. It is a political entity in the sense that everything that it does can always be given the interpretation of political mileage or angling; and as such is always open to both attack and appreciation from a variety of actors of a political complexion across a spectrum of inclinations. It is clear that one is called upon to do some little spin doctoring, and of course spin doctoring and concealment do not go together with public accountability; so, I have always been clear that I would stay clear of any spin doctoring.

After a year and half in office, anybody is free to do some stock taking and I’m also obliged to do so, as to how much of that public accountability versus spin doctoring, which is like walking on a razor edge, I have observed thus far.

LT: What exactly is the net value of having this office as a public servant instead of a cabinet minister?

NS: As opposed to the past when the Information minister has been serving as the government spokesperson, perhaps by default, last year cabinet decided to create this office as independent.  This presents both challenges and opportunities from the point of view of the consumer, as well as the public as the owners of the work, and the government as the shepherd of that work.  Some of these advantages are that the government spokesperson will be readily available to receive and questions to the media and other interested parties while the minister might be ceased with various commitments from time to time that make him or her inaccessible. The government spokesperson might be relatively free from prejudices and personal attachments and attacks as a person, as opposed to a minister who is seen as a doer of an act that the government which he represents might be accused of.

The spokesperson is open to being directed by any member of the cabinet on the necessity to make certain interventions, clarifications and representations on behalf of either the cabinet, a section of the cabinet or individual ministers. If one minister does that to another serving as spokesperson, this might have connotations where one who is approached might feel as if he or she is being made an errand runner by somebody who is their equal. The potential requester might even feel they are being shepherded by a peer in the information ministry.

Other have of course, had reservations coming out of perceptions of disempowerment or encroachment by sections of the cabinet who felt that the office in this form, takes away certain privileges, the prestige, the resources of self-gratification and an advancement of own political agenda by the person holding that position as a politician in the cabinet. Some have suggested that it is awkward to have as a cabinet spokesperson someone who does not sit in cabinet and must information only from those who sit on cabinet; whereas that information might not always be forthcoming – not to mention that there might be distortions or some miscomprehension or something that one  might say “lost in transmission” of the information from the source that sits on the cabinet to the person who ought to convey it to the public and others who might inquire about the availability of such.

These are some of the considerations that I have had to live with and might not wish to say whether they prevail or they actually subsist as projected.

LT: There have been concerns that too many persons speak for this office today as opposed to before you came along, how do you explain that?

NS: My letter of appointment says that I am the government spokesperson; and my job description says to coordinate all government communication to the public. This to me says I set the tone for everyone who speaks for any unit of government and “ensure timely, consistent, coherent, and coordinated communication to the public on all matters relating to the government’s agenda”. I am also given to research all factors that affect the image of the government, devise strategies for improving that image, arrange information and promotional campaigns and handle crisis and emergency communications.

It is clear that this is a wide casting of the net but I’m aware that since we have a cadre of information and public relations officers across the web of government ministries and departments, starting with cabinet itself; and we have a few chat groups especially on WhatsApp which are administered by myself and other colleagues on general communications, reforms logistics, reforms communications and strategy, government reforms “manifesto” or position paper which brings persons of the caliber of ministers who populate the co-ruling parties executive committees – all these exist to discharge specified functions which cannot all fall on the shoulders of the spokesperson as the chief government communicator.

I respect their regular performance of their functions and only intervene on high-end political implications of their functions.  I have said this before, when answering some on-air charges of sleeping on duty by some ruling parties’ spokespersons in cahoots with some ministers, some of my colleagues in office, as well as some self-ingratiating and affection-ticket of propagating the untruth that I have been sleeping on duty, by their own confession.

I might speak on the signature of the inter-state compacts like the Lesotho Highlands Water Project or the Millennium Challenge Account, and on their implications for turning the fortunes of the citizens and state protection of the rights and equity of access to opportunities. However, this is not to usurp the public relations officer’s (PRO) job of speaking on routine matters like opening of clinics and distribution of compensation for resettled communities.

On the converse, I’m of course alert to the furor that is sometimes aroused by some persons speaking for the government while I’m still in the post and on the ground. I’m not going to sit as judge on the phenomenon, save to speak to its evolution.

When I established office, one of my first outings was an assignment to co-draft a statement with the Prime Minister’s Press Attaché. Whether it was meant to be a long-haul affair and sustainable and how I felt about it is neither here nor there. What matters for now is that as my colleague intermittently appeared speaking for the government, which was never the case when the minister was in office before I established it as independent. That attracted a rising tide of social media and radio talk show objections, which prompted our boss, the government secretary to call the media on a surprise briefing to set the record straight, if I may invoke a cliché.

There he said he was the one responsible for releasing government information to the public and the world, and he could use anyone including Mr Selinyane, Mr Thakalekoala, Motšoari, or Ntsokotsane who were all in his office; and nobody had any right to question his prerogative of who he sent to speak for the government on his behalf because that was his own function.

The media of course, neither reported that nor stopped in their insistence on the separation of the two functions in action. While I cannot say there was a fallout from the turn of events but certainly having multiple personalities speaking for the state has had deleterious effects. There was a time, for example when my office put out an elaborate statement explaining the country’s journey to securing the Second Compact of the MCC, after a thorough debriefing of the LMDA management, following which the PM went on air briefing Parliament that we scored 80 percent on assessment and were on course to being re-selected – only for someone from part of our Cabinet Office communications to come through and say we had already secured the Compact. That was last November and another November later, we’re still confidently awaiting selections, not because we’re deviant or disliked but because that is how that course runs, and the Americans must have been shocked at pretension of the Lesotho state communications that we had been selected.

Only recently, we sustained another round of miscommunications when I was insisting on radio stations that in the ethos of public accountability, the LDF Public Affairs Office had no grounding in saying the army would not explain itself to the nation about withdrawing wholly the bodyguards of ministers to attend a general parade to be told about their disgruntled leadership’s position on security agencies’ salaries harmonisation – only for the selfsame communicator to come through defending the army for making arrangement of “skeleton staff guards” at ministers’ homes, contrary to the army itself braving that they left their sentries empty.

Sometimes I have ministers simply telling me that I should follow them on radio like everybody else if I want to know what they have been doing in their critical errands about which the nation awaits reports. Let me not be misunderstood here. I speak for the government, if the government temporarily recalls its mandate delegated to me by appointment and job description, either as “full bench” of cabinet or its specialised committees like that on factory salaries, wool and mohair marketing, basic education strike, etc then I have no reason to complain. But when that results in running helter-skelter in tone or content, and eventuates in me being accused of being a truant, as though I now have to compete for the shine of ministers, as my masters, it becomes a different kettle of fish altogether…

LT: Some politicians including some ministers have accused you of being inefficient, sleeping on the job and leaking state secrets, what is your take on this?

NS: Which government secrets when I have been taken out of all official government chat groups, except those created and administered by myself, for about a year now and don’t get told such unless where I get information in droplets.  If this was true, I could have been fired.

In my contract, that is an offence that warrants expulsion. It is also a state crime which still remains on our statute books. As for sleeping on the job, everybody hears me on the whole array of radio stations without fault whenever they have questions, and on quizzical talk shows like the ones I hosted on the way we speak national unity and reconciliation…

When the other day I stood up and dragged Motumi Ralejoe of TšenoloFm to the Broadcasting Dispute Resolution Panel (BDRP) and ultimately settled down to his on-air apology and withdrawal for maligning the PM by playing a 2014 Pitso speech clip as though it was a 2019 speech…

I could do that because the PM is head of the government and my coverage is universal, except that I won’t do that when another communicator is already doing so on his or her turf – but no other single communicator in any other cabinet or ministerial office enjoys the same outreach.

In January 2019 the cabinet committee on reforms headed by Hon Lesego Makgothi charged me with establishing a government Reforms Communications team, and I assembled it with persons from cabinet, Public Service and the Communications ministry. It joined together with NDPC communicators Messrs Morrison and Boitumelo Koloi to make a National Reforms Communications team which was instrumental in accelerating awareness, education, and resolving intermittent standoffs among government, NDPC and role players on the Lesotho National Dialogue Project (LNDP).

The government’s Reforms Communications team in February put together a consensus position paper of the government on all seven themes of reforms following the retreats of NECs and Joint Caucus of parties, and later developed Cabinet Paper for Hon Minister of Communications to put through Cabinet, but to date the government hasn’t adopted Reforms position, as Hon Thesele ‘Maseribane told the NLF last Thursday.

Is that still the servant sleeping on duty? Sometimes one has to handle crisis and emergency communication like the recent Morocco-Saharawi diplomatic shamble, and you find that your resourcefulness relies on cooperation of people who have messed up and yet are expected to be the ones who wipe up. Is that still the servant sleeping on the job?

LT: What in your opinion is the ideal tone and slant that the office should adopt in order to be of maximum effect?

NS: Every government communicator’s tone should be that of showing respect and civility to all segments of community; never to hurl curses and invectives at them, however unpleasing some of their known inclinations and often-repeated statements. The first key word in government communications is accountability; the second is accountability; and the third is accountability.

LT: Access and receipt of information are critical to an effective communications office, especially in a democracy as you keep repeating. What factors usually come between you and rapid flow of critical official information?

NS: Ideally someone in this post should be aware of cabinet agenda and what individual ministries and agencies are doing at any point in time. That way, one can toss the questions that are on the public minds and media for their advance addressing, instead of being reactive. There have been calls for routine, preferably weekly, publication of cabinet decisions and update on their execution. We did that only once since I came into office, and clearly there is an accountability deficit, which I think should be a cardinal concern of my office, and its resolution is central to the ethos of our governance. This is still palpably present and crying for address.

The post I am not sleeping on duty: Selinyane appeared first on Lesotho Times.

Bereng Mpaki

LESOTHO Flour Mills (LFM) was recently forced to temporarily shut down its animal feed mill after a fatal accident that claimed the life of one of the company’s staff.

The accident happened on the evening of 31 November 2019.

The deceased employee was found inside one of the mill’s chop buffer bins in the animal feed section with serious injuries.

A statement from the company said the employee was successfully removed from the bin with the assistance of the police but unfortunately, he later died from the injuries.

“Lesotho Flour Mills hereby informs all customers and the nation about an incident in which one of its employees was found inside a chop buffer bin located at the animal feed mill, and terribly injured on the night of 31 October 2019,” LFM said in the statement.

“The police played a major role in ensuring that the employee got rescue and got him immediate medical care. We are eternally grateful for their prompt and diligent efforts. We are saddened however, to report that the employee lost his life a few days later.”

The company has allayed fears of possible contamination of its product arising from the accident.

“We assure our customers and the nation that LFM has dealt with this issue with due diligence to assert that our product is kept to its normal high-quality hygiene standards.

“Our management team further apologises for any delays in production and delivery of feed products as the affected area had to be temporarily closed…

“Our management team truly regrets this tragic incident and sends heartfelt condolences to the family (of the deceased) and employees.”

LFM general manager Charles Williams said he was unable to comment on the incident as he was out of the country.

For his part, the LFM marketing officer Bofihla ‘Neko said it was still unclear how the employee got into the chop buffer bin.

He however, said the company has health and safety programmes in place to sensitise workers about possible injuries and health hazards that may occur in their line of duty.

“The accident has led to the temporary shutdown of operations in the animal feed mill and therefore, this means our production operations were affected.”

Production has since resumed this week.

Founded in 1976, LFM is a state enterprise which manufactures and distributes fast moving consumer goods (FMCG) in the milling and sugar packaging areas.

The company operates in four product categories namely maize milling, flour milling, feed milling and sugar packaging.

The post Flour Mills temporarily shuts down after employee death appeared first on Lesotho Times.

Bereng Mpaki

BASOTHO Enterprise Development Corporation (BEDCO) this week launched a business plan completion for young innovative entrepreneurs aiming to develop their high potential business ideas.

The competition seeks to support the growth and development of the micro, small and medium enterprises (MSME’s). It is a joint African Development Bank (AfDB)-Lesotho government project called the Economic Diversification Support Project (EDSP) – Promoting Enterprise Development.

The competition will take an initial 110 participants before whittling them down to 10 who will have an opportunity to win various cash prizes amounting to M1 million.

BEDCO’s acting chief executive officer Pesha Shale, said the competition focuses on developing small enterprises since the sector has potential to create more jobs than large enterprises.

“The average of jobs created by the small business sector is over 70 percent globally,” Mr Shale said during the launch of the competition.

“This project is therefore meant to help us promote enterprise development by focusing on the small enterprise sector.”

He said the government project is premised on the high poverty rate and unemployment challenges that the country is struggling to address.

“During the graduation time of tertiary students some of us get troubled because we know that our system is unable to absorb all the graduates.”

Mr Shale said the country was unable to create jobs partly because of heavy reliance on the public sector.

He said addressing the problems was long overdue to ensure that the private sector is drives the country’s economy while creating employment.

Mr Shale said the training will include improvement of the submitted business plans and business plan pitch among others.

He said the competition targets high potential businesses by youth and women in the priority sectors of manufacturing, agriculture, tourism and renewable energy as per the country’s second National Strategic Development Plan (NSDP II).

The eligible entrepreneurs are indigenous Lesotho citizens working and living in the country, must be over 18 years, must be able to participate in all the competitions activities among others.

Applications open on 12 November and close on 8 December 2019.

For his part, principal secretary in the Ministry of Small Business Development, Cooperative and Marketing Lerata Pekane welcomed the competition and said it would go a long way in improving the country’s MSMEs.

Mr Pekane said while MSME seem to command a dominant share of the job market, they were still far from contributing to the country’s gross domestic product (GDP).

The EDSP project supports the development of MSME’s through distinct work streams like assessment of the current business development service providers market and developing their appropriate market growth strategy.

The project also nurtures start-up businesses and entrepreneurs through strategy development plan implementation for business incubation.

The post BEDCO launches business competition appeared first on Lesotho Times.

Bereng Mpaki

BUSINESS tycoon Sam Matekane of Matekane Group of Companies (MGC) says political instability and corruption have a negative impact on the country’s ability to attract investment.

Mr Matekane says the on-going political instability and escalating corruption have made attracting investment into the country tougher.

Mr Matekane said this earlier this week upon his arrival from Canada where he recently received a business excellence and philanthropy award from the Canadian business community.

Through the recognition, Mr Matekane has also been appointed an ambassador of the African business community and he is now expected to act as a conduit between Canadian businesses and those from the continent.

The award certificate was jointly signed by the Canada-Africa Chamber of Business president Garreth Bloor and prime minister of Lesotho Thomas Thabane.

The message on the certificate reads: “In appreciative recognition of your outstanding business acumen and commendable philanthropic contribution for the welfare of the Basotho nation, the government of Lesotho and the Canada- Africa Chamber of Business jointly present to you Mr Ntsokoane Samuel Matekane this certificate of honour”.

And on arrival back home this week, Mr Matekane said political instability and corruption chase away prospective investors.

“The major obstacles in business are political instability and corruption,” Mr Matekane said.

“These very things were also discussed in Canada, that when a country is unstable, and is involved in corruption scandals, then it becomes a challenge for investors to come in because they do not like to inject money into an unpredictable environment. They will simply look for other countries to invest in.

“And this is going to make my job (of attracting investors) difficult.”

He said the recognition would allow him to represent Lesotho and other African states in talks with the Canadian community.

“This award says I will be able to go to Canada to engage with the Canadian private sector to come up with plans on how to help African states to do business with their Canadian counterparts.

“I will be going back to Canada before the end of this month to meet with the Canadian Chamber of Business to plan how we are going to work going forward.”

He also said that his mission is to look for trade partnerships instead of aid.

“I am not going to go out there to look for grain but I will go out to look for people who will help us to produce our own grain with the land that we have.

“I will look for investors who will come to develop our towns. That is the only way we can ever hope to change the status quo of this country.

“We all know that countries like Canada have been donating food stuffs to Lesotho for a long time but I am saying the days of donations are over. We must strive for solidarity as a nation and build a country that we can all be proud of.”

Mr Matekane said the award was a huge honour to him and the whole country.

“I am thankful for the recognition because I did not know that while I was going on about my business somebody was watching. So, the award is a pat on the shoulder from those who have been watching my work.”

He also called on the private sector to unite for improved impact on the country’s economic development. He also encouraged them to join the Lesotho Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI), which he is a member of.

“Since I am going to be you representative in talks with the business communities from other countries, unity will make it easier for me to represent your interests.

“When business is united, it is able to engage with government and advise it accordingly on business matters.  Our rulers are not business people and therefore they cannot possibly know how best to lead the business sector,” Mr Matekane said.

The post Matekane rues instability, corruption appeared first on Lesotho Times.

’Marafaele Mohloboli

FORMER Deputy Prime Minister Mothetjoa Metsing has attributed his fallout with the coalition partner and current Prime Minister Thomas Thabane to disagreements over the withholding of former Prime Minister Pakalitha Mosisili’s terminal benefits after the latter was succeeded by Dr Thabane as premier in 2012.

Mr Metsing, who leads the Lesotho Congress for Democracy (LCD), was deputy prime minister in the first coalition comprising of Dr Thabane’s All Basotho Convention (ABC) and Chief Thesele Maseribane’s Basotho National Party (BNP) from 2012 to 2015. He said his attempts to broker peace between Dr Mosisili and Dr Thabane “cost me dearly with my then coalition partners”. He said they also fell out after he resisted his coalition partners’ demand for the firing of then Attorney General, Tšokolo Makhethe, and Director of Public Prosecutions, Leaba Thetsane.

He said his coalition partners wanted Messrs Makhethe and Thetsane fired on the grounds that they were allegedly congress supporters.

Mr Metsing said this while addressing LCD supporters at a weekend rally in Mphosong.

He also bemoaned the current fallout between the LCD and the DC after all the support he offered the DC’s former leader, Dr Mosisili and Messrs Makhethe and Thetsane who were branded DC loyalists by his erstwhile coalition partners.

“The fallout came about when we were told by our coalition partners to fire the then Attorney General, Tšokolo Makhethe, and the Director of Public Prosecutions, Leaba Thetsane, because they were said to be Democratic Congress followers. But we stood by them and fought for them.

“I am the one who sought legal advice when Ntate Mosisili’s benefits were withheld because I felt it was the right thing to do and that is when the enmity (with ABC and BNP) started but today they (DC members) speak ill of me.

“I even tried to intervene and broker peace between Ntate Thabane and Ntate Mosisili back then and that cost me dearly with my then coalition partners.”

Mr Metsing said at the time he felt confronting his then coalition partners over the Mosisili, Makhethe and Thetsane issues was the best thing to do but with the advantage of hindsight, he would advise his followers pursue the path  of peace and reconciliation with rival parties.

“Even if we are subjected to extreme provocation let us rather pray that God makes us instruments of peace where there are differences. Let us not give in to provocation and fight. We should remain humble even when the situation demands otherwise. We should be like the Lamb of God (Jesus) who remained humble even when he was going to be sacrificed. This country shall only be saved by humility not by showing other people how much fury one has.”

He reiterated his call for a government of national unity (GNU) to lead the country in the implementation of the multi-sector reforms process which are crucial to achieving lasting peace and stability in the country. He said upon assuming power alongside the DC in 2017, they lost the plot by hiring their supporters to the civil service

“This country needs a GNU to achieve peace and stability. A GNU will only be temporary while we get our house in order.

“When we came back in the country from exile we found that our colleagues in the opposition who once shared our sentiments on the issue of GNU had changed. To them this was no longer an issue of interest but we forged on and never lost focus because we think the GNU is the only best way to overcome our problems as a nation. This is the only way to fight poverty and unemployment.”

He also castigated the culture of governments only hiring their supporters to work in the civil service, saying there could never be peace and stability as long as this continued. He admitted to hiring his own supporters during his time in government with Dr Mosisili. “When the then DC leader (Dr Mosisili) became prime minister and I became deputy prime minister, our style of administration changed and we started giving jobs to our followers only. But today I am convinced that no country can ever progress and attain peace under those circumstances.

“If supporters of the governing parties are the only ones hired and others left to suffer and die of hunger, there shall never be peace. The suffering of a nationalist should be as worrying as that of congress supporters and none of us should take any joy in each other’s suffering. We are all Basotho.

“Ensuring everyone else’s welfare cannot be done by one party, it needs a concerted effort to make things right…hence the need for a GNU. We are convinced that we don’t have any other choice but to go that (GNU) route. I believe that if the government is inclusive, there would be less hatred.”

He said his insistence on a GNU was motivated by patriotism and not self-interest as he had already “had my share of a good life when you voted me into power and made me deputy prime minister”.

“Very soon, my benefits shall be paid out and the government has an obligation to give me a state funeral when I die. So I am not asking for a GNU because I want to be part of it. As a Mosotho, I only want what is best for others because I have already been given respect. Even if I were to leave parliament, I would still earn more than parliamentarians,” Mr Metsing said.

The post Metsing speaks on fallout with Thabane appeared first on Lesotho Times.

Pascalinah Kabi

SOME members of the ruling All Basotho Convention (ABC) are livid with Local Government and Chieftainship ministry principal secretary, Khothatso Tšooana, and want Prime Minister Thomas Thabane to fire him for “spilling the beans” on the First Lady, Maesaiah Thabane.

Last Wednesday, Mr Tšooana made headlines when he told the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) that Ms Thabane and two cabinet ministers directed that a lucrative M380 million Mpilo Boulevard construction tender be awarded to UNIK Construction Engineering Company. The Mpilo Boulevard tender is for the construction of new road links, flyover bridges for vehicles as well as pedestrian bridges.

When complete, the new look Mpilo Boulevard is expected to reduce traffic congestion in the city as well as carnage on the roads.

Mr Tšooana also claimed that two cabinet ministers, Mahala Molapo (Local Government and Chieftaincy) and Chalane Phori (Small Business Development, Cooperatives and Marketing) also supported the directive.

He said Ms Thabane and the two ministers wanted UNIK awarded the tender to reward its owner, Yan Xie, for allegedly assisting Dr Thabane and members of the ABC during their time in exile in South Africa during the political instability from 2015 to 2017.

According to Mr Tšooana, Ms Thabane and the two ministers delivered the order in a meeting at State House, Maseru on 15 October 2019. This was just three days before the MCC’s tender board met to study the tendering evaluation report before deciding the winning bid. He said Dr Thabane also attended the meeting.

He however, absolved Dr Thabane of any wrongdoing saying although he attended the meeting the premier advised them against any improper conduct and instead told them to “go and do the right thing” by awarding the tender to the deserving bidder.

Dr Thabane and Ms Thabane were away in Canada for a business conference last week when Mr Tšooana testified before the PAC. The premier returned to the country on Sunday via South Africa and he was met at the Maseru border by several ABC supporters who waved placards with messages saying “Tšooana must go home”.

Dr Thabane briefly addressed his supporters and told them that he remains the prime minister until the next general elections officially due in 2022.

The embattled premier faces a battle to stay on after disgruntled ABC legislators loyal to his estranged party deputy, Professor Nqosa Mahao, filed a no confidence motion against him in parliament.

The motion is the culmination of several months of infighting stemming from Dr Thabane’s refusal to accept the February 2019 election of Prof Mahao as deputy leader.

In his brief Sunday address, Dr Thabane did not speak on the Tšooana issue despite being prompted to do so by the party supporters who waved placards and denounced the principal secretary for “exposing” the First Lady and the cabinet ministers.

However, the Prime Minister’s spokesperson, Thabo Thakalekoala, this week told the Lesotho Times that Dr Thabane would have an audience with Mr Tšooana to establish what occurred at the PAC session last Wednesday.

“The prime minister was not in the country when these issues unfolded and he was very exhausted from his trip on Sunday. He (Dr Thabane) is yet to establish what is going on and apply his mind on the issues thereafter.

“He will probably sit down with him (Tšooana) to get a full explanation of what happened and make a decision. He will sit down with him and probably say, ‘man what went wrong? What is happening?’ But Ntate Tšooana remains the principal secretary and so far the prime minister has not taken any decision regarding this matter (that Tšooana must go home),” Mr Thakalekoala said.

Mr Tšooana told the Selibe Mochoboroane-led PAC that Ms Thabane and Messrs Molapo and Phori ordered him to award the M380 million tender to UNIK Construction. Mr Phori subsequently told this publication that his company, Tsoapos Brick Works Company, had submitted a joint bid for the tender with UNIK Construction Engineering, a company he said was owned by controversial Chinese businessman, Yan Xie.

Meanwhile, analysts this week said Messrs Tšooana and Maboee’s revelations to PAC pointed to endemic corruption within government. Senior political science lecturer at the National University of Lesotho (NUL), Tlohang Letsie, said corruption was a stumbling block to the equal distribution of wealth among citizens.  Dr Letsie said such fights over tenders could also destabilise and even bring down the government in the same way that the previous Democratic Congress-led government collapsed due to the infighting brought on by the controversial government fleet service tender which had been awarded to South African company, Bidvest, in 2015.

“It is obvious that corruption has a negative impact on Lesotho’s economy and corruption affects the economy in various ways including by dampening  investor confidence.

“In 2015 there was the Bidvest tender which ultimately caused the collapse of the then government. It is possible even today that the fight over tenders can result in the collapse of this government.

“The leading party in the coalition government, ABC, is already fighting and has factions. If you look this closely, the revelations on the tenders is coming from the so called State House faction (which supports Dr Thabane against Prof Mahao) and this is likely to divide this faction.

“This (revelation) is likely to cause more tensions which will trickle down to government. More people are likely to reveal others’ secrets in the ABC and other coalition partners like the AD (Alliance of Democrats) to make sure they don’t go down alone,” Dr Letsie said.

On his part, local businessman Thuso Green said it was totally wrong for ministers to be allowed to adjudicate over tenders. He said the Mpilo tender pitting Mr Tšooana against Mr Phori was a classic example of how deeply rooted corruption had become in Lesotho.

He said it was very sad that ministers unilaterally awarded tenders to their favourites, especially the Chinese thereby saddling the country with huge debts.

“Just look at the M2, 4 billion tender (for the construction of new sporting facilities for regional youth games to be held in Lesotho in 2020). That tender was decided by few ministers and yet it is going to cost this country big time. Something is wrong in this country. Look at Phori. During the MCC tendering process, he ran to state house to influence the decisions of the tender panel. This is a serious problem because the MCC tender was solely in the hands of Tšooana and the (local government) minister.

“This has opened a door for corruption in this country and closed the other for accountability. There is absolutely no accountability in this country. Even institutions that were supposed to be condemning these acts have been divided along political lines.

“We need to have a central body to adjudicate on these tenders. We cannot continue having a situation where a ministry or minister adjudicates over a tender. We will continue to have these problems as long as a single minister adjudicates over tenders,” Mr Green said.

The post ABC supporters bay for PS Tšooana’s blood appeared first on Lesotho Times.

When magistrates, who are the custodians of justice in any given country, decide to sue their own government, then things have gone horribly wrong. In fact, it’s a scenario that we have never fathomed, let alone heard of anywhere. Yet it has just happened here in Lesotho. It can only happen in Lesotho, the cynics will surely say.  We cannot think of anything that should be worse embarrassing for any government.

The coalition  of Prime Minister Thomas Thabane has no one but itself to blame for this fateful decision by the country’s 50 plus magistrates’. The magistrates opted to drag the government to court last week over perennial disputes about salary increments and improved working conditions.

We repeat, nowhere else in the world does one ever hear of magistrates and police officers going on strike. Yet it has happened here. We have not only witnessed police officers and magistrates opting for strike action.  We have now witnessed the unprecedented phenomenon of the judicial officers suing the government to force it into action over  the long outstanding issue of their  salary increments and better working conditions.

This is what legendary Nigerian author Chinua Achebe probably had in mind when he said that things have fallen apart and the centre cannot hold.

As we reported in our previous edition, the magistrates opted to sue the government, accusing it of destroying their “morale, enthusiasm and passion” through its failure to adequately remunerate them and to allocate sufficient funding to enable them to discharge their duties.

While this may be a very rare unheard of occurrence, the lawsuit did not just come from the blue. It was the culmination of several years of the magistrates’ fruitless efforts to persuade the government to increase their salaries and benefits as well as recognise them as constitutionally distinct beings from civil servants. In July 2018 and again in April 2019, the magistrates took the unprecedented step of staging go-slow strikes to protest what they said were “our shockingly poor salaries and benefits”.

They also complained of lack of benefits including transport and housing allowances which forced most of them to rent what they call dilapidated houses and use unsafe public transport, which they sometimes share with the very criminals they would have convicted. They only called off the job actions when the government promised to address their grievances.

But after months of waiting in vain for feedback and concrete action, their patience has finally worn off and they have taken the unprecedented step of collectively suing the government.

But it did not have to come to this. The strikes and even the lawsuit could have been avoided had the government paid more attention to the magistrates’’ long-standing grievances instead of dismissing them out of hand as it did.

Like all other grievances presented by civil servants, the grievances are genuine. Yet the persistent response of the government has been to ignore them. While it cannot be expected that they could all be addressed in one sitting the fact that the grievances date as far back as 2005 suggest that successive governments could not be bothered to begin tackling the issues.

And this will not end with the magistrates. Next it will be the police, the teachers and other civil servants dragging the government to court over their salary grievances and working conditions. And so the story goes on.

There something is certainly wrong with the way the government responds to grievances. Ministers have often been accused of bunking meetings with aggrieved civil servants.

The magistrates have certainly reached the end of the proverbial tither. Their action speaks volumes of not only a judiciary in crisis but a whole country now sitting at the edge of a precipice. Unless the government gets its act together and concentrate on the business of growing the economy and generating wealth, expect more similar actions from different sectors of the civil service.

The post Sitting on the edge of a cliff   appeared first on Lesotho Times.

Nthatuoa Koeshe

BLACK Mix Lesotho has partnered with Avani Hotels for the Warrior Run; a race meant to celebrate the Men’s Health Month on 23 November 2019.

The Men’s Health Month is celebrated in November annually and the race will start at Avani Lesotho and end at Avani Maseru.

Black Mix founder and chief executive officer Manisha Black told the Xpress People that the event would this year focus on creating awareness about different forms of cancer.

She said participants would be dressed in purple speedos.

“It takes guts to run through Maseru only wearing a purple speedo,” Black said.

“The run will be held in the spirit of creating awareness on testicular cancer.

“We encourage men to participate in solidarity with brothers suffering from cancer or they can help us honour those who have lost their lives to cancer.”

She said apart from being fun, the run was “the right thing, unique and empowering”.

“It is also about being the talk of the town. November is Men’s Health Month and we want to use this opportunity to make a difference in the country.

“This event is designed to eradicate the behaviour of ignoring the biggest threat to men’s health; which is prostate cancer,” she said.

Black said one in every six men suffers from prostate cancer and the Warrior Run is designed to raise awareness on this fact and encourage men to get tested for cancer.

The post Black Mix hosts Warrior Run appeared first on Lesotho Times.