—Riled by his “incompetency, dishonesty”
—Over failure to issue them with proper identity documents
Mathatisi Sebusi
BASOTHO migrants working and studying in South Africa want Local Government, Chieftainship, Home Affairs and Police Minister Lebona Lephema, fired for his “incompetence and dishonesty”.
The Basotho, operating under what they describe as ‘Hands-Off Basotho Movement’, are frustrated with Mr Lephema failure to issue them with passports on time or at all. They also accuse him of failing to effectively engage with South African authorities regarding work permits, study permits, and new Lesotho Exemption Permit (LEP) applications.
What angers them most is that Mr Lephema has “repeatedly lied” about his ministry’s readiness to provide them with critical documents yet it has failed to do so.
As a result, the Basotho working and studying in South Africa say they will petition Prime Minister Sam Matekane next week demanding that he fires Minister Lephema for “incompetency and dishonesty”.
‘Hands-Off Basotho Movement’ president, Semenyane Linale, told the Lesotho Times yesterday, that they had already applied for a permit from the Maseru City Council (MCC) to march and deliver the petition to the Prime Minister.
Mr Linale said Mr Lephema was incompetent and had grossly failed Basotho. His ministry’s perennial failure to issue critical documents timeously and inability to effectively engage with South African authorities over the status of Basotho in that country had caused them significant inconveniences and jeopardized their living circumstances.
Mr Linale accused Minister Lephema of “endless lies” and making “empty promises”.
“We want Mr Lephema removed as minister due to his incompetence and his administration’s constant lies,” Mr Linale said.
“Basotho are struggling to get passports and other crucial identity documents, yet Mr Lephema has been telling us that passports are available and that he is engaging with South Africa to facilitate easier movement. All of this has turned out to be lies.”
Mr Linale said the situation of Basotho in South Africa remained dire with many being routinely arrested and abused by their employers with no help from their government.
Undocumented Basotho faced difficulties accessing medical services while their children could not be enrolled in schools.
In a very unhappy tone, Mr Linale chastised Mr Lephema for “falsely” claiming that the governments of Lesotho and South Africa had reached an agreement to grant 90-day visas to Lesotho nationals studying and working in the neighbouring country.
He said South African immigration officials consistently denied the existence of such an agreement.
“We are also concerned about the minister’s false promises regarding the 90-day visa,” Mr Linale said.
“That has turned out to be another lie, and we are tired of listening to his empty rhetoric.”
This is not the first time Mr Lephema, has been accused of making false statements about his department’s operations.
On September 3, 2024, the Senate’s Government Assurances Committee (GAC) publicly chastised him for misleading them about the department’s ability to seamlessly issue passports to Basotho.
The GAC strongly criticized Mr Lephema for providing inaccurate information that his ministry was on top of a crisis that had left many Basotho unable to access passports and national ID documents.
But during their inspection, the GAC experienced the chaos at the home affairs department first hand.
It was saddled with a backlog of 37,000 passport applications dating back to 2018 which it was failing to clear.
Lerato Nkhetṧe, the director of the Migrant Workers Association (MWA-Ls), echoed Mr Linale’s sentiments, saying that Basotho working and studying in South Africa without proper documentation were facing severe problems.
However, Mr Nkhetṧe did not believe that Mr Lephema intentionally lied about negotiations with South Africa.
Rather, he suggested Mr Lephema lacked an effective feedback mechanism and often miscommunicated the details of these negotiations.
“Mr Lephema often raises the hopes of Basotho by prematurely announcing negotiations, only to fail to provide any follow-up feedback,” Mr Nkhetṧe said.
“He is often overwhelmed by political excitement and reveals information too early. He needs to be more careful with how he communicates messages to the public.”
Mr Nkhetṧe also highlighted a key challenge with Mr Lephema’s ministry, that migration issues were often negotiated in isolation, without input from migrants themselves or other directly affected stakeholders.
“Migratory matters are complex and require inclusive consultations so policymakers are well-informed about what is being negotiated,” he noted.
Mr Nkhetṧe said Lesotho was grappling with high unemployment, leading many Basotho to seek work in South Africa. It thus made sense that the government take a firm interest in dealing with migration matters affecting its citizens.
Attempts to reach Mr Lephema for comment were unsuccessful, as his phone went unanswered.
