Moroke Sekoboto
REVOLUTION for Prosperity (RFP) leader, Sam Matekane, has reiterated his promise to transform the socio-economic fortunes of Lesotho in the event that he wins the 7 October elections.
He said this while addressing a Ha ‘Masana, Qeme rally early this week.
The rally came on the back of a tumultuous week for the RFP leader wherein scores of party supporters staged street protests and burned RFP regalia in Maseru in anger over the leadership’s decision to snub some of the individuals they had chosen in primaries to represent the party in the upcoming national elections.
Former cabinet minister, Mahali Phamotse, is one of the high-profile candidates who triumphed in the primaries in her Matlakeng constituency, only to be shunned by Mr Matekane and his inner circle. Instead, they opted for the relatively unknown Kenny Ntoane to represent the party in that constituency.
But if the huge crowd of about 3000 people who attended the Qeme rally is anything to go by, it would mean that the fallout from the primaries has had minimal or no effect on the party’s apparent popularity since its 22 March 2022 formation.
In his address to the vociferous crowd, Mr Matekane did not delve into the controversy surrounding the recent primaries, save to thank party members for choosing their top four candidates for consideration by the national executive committee (NEC). Mr Matekane and his NEC eventually selected the candidates to represent the party in 69 constituencies. The RFP leader and 10 of his closest allies had already given themselves the nod to represent the party in their constituencies without having to undergo any primaries. The move has been slammed as dictatorial by some party supporters.
He reiterated his usual campaign themes of spearheading socio-economic development should he win the forthcoming elections.
“An RFP government will address the challenges that Basotho are faced with,” Mr Matekane said.
“Our party is the only hope for Basotho and we will do all in our power to rescue this country from its predicament.
“Upon winning power in October, the RFP government will tackle the high rate of stock theft by inserting micro-chips in animals so that they are easily traceable if stolen.
“We plan to supply Basotho with free quality breeding rams in order to improve the quality of our livestock. Animal medicines will be a priority as it is in RFP’s plans as our party intends on having such stores.
“We will establish Basotho-owned clothing factories to create jobs and foster economic growth. We will also support the agricultural sector to boost both livestock and crop farming” Mr Matekane said.
