…after job offer withdrawn on eve of reporting for duty
Moorosi Tsiane
A local medical doctor has sued Partners in Health (PIH) in the High Court, seeking more than M2.2 million in damages after the international health organisation allegedly withdrew his employment offer just hours before he was due to report for duty.
Dr Sello Jafeta claims PIH unlawfully cancelled a binding employment contract after he had accepted the offer, relocated from Butha-Buthe to Mohale’s Hoek, incurred relocation costs, purchased work-related necessities and turned down other employment opportunities in anticipation of starting work on 1 October 2025.
He argues that the organisation’s decision to revoke the offer at the eleventh hour amounted to a material breach of contract, causing him substantial financial and professional prejudice.
PIH is a global health non-profit organisation which has worked alongside the Ministry of Health since 2006 to combat HIV/AIDS and tuberculosis (including drug-resistant strains) in rural, hard-to-reach areas.
In papers filed before the High Court, Dr Jafeta asks the court to compel PIH to honour the employment agreement by reinstating the offer and allowing him to assume duty on a mutually agreed date, together with full backpay from 1 October 2025.
Alternatively, he seeks M2,217,200 in contractual damages, M50,000 in punitive damages, interest at 25 percent tempore morae and legal costs on an attorney-and-own-client scale.
According to the application, PIH issued Dr Jafeta with a formal offer of employment dated 15 September 2025, appointing him as a Medical Officer based in Mohale’s Hoek.
The offer carried a gross monthly salary of M46,000, together with a benefits package that included a provident fund, medical aid, housing or relocation assistance where applicable, annual leave and other standard employment benefits.
Under the provident fund arrangement, PIH would contribute 7.5 percent of his monthly salary, while he would contribute a minimum of five percent.
Dr Jafeta says he accepted the offer unconditionally on or about 20 September 2025, creating what he describes as a valid and binding employment contract.
“The offer was formally accepted and acknowledged by Partners in Health, thereby creating a valid and binding contract between the parties,” he states in his founding affidavit.
He argues that all the legal requirements necessary for the formation of a contract had been met.
According to his application, PIH made a clear offer, which he accepted without qualification. He says there was consensus between the parties, lawful consideration in the form of his agreement to provide medical services in exchange for remuneration, contractual capacity and certainty of terms.
“A valid and binding contract existed because all the essential elements of a contract were present. There was a formal offer, unconditional acceptance, mutual agreement, lawful consideration, contractual capacity and certainty of terms.”
After accepting the position, Dr Jafeta says he immediately began preparing to relocate from Butha-Buthe to Mohale’s Hoek.
He secured accommodation, hired moving services and paid transportation costs associated with relocating his household.
He also informed professional contacts and prospective employers that he would no longer be available for other opportunities because he had secured employment with PIH.
According to the application, he also declined another employment offer from a clinic in Butha-Buthe that allegedly offered a comparable salary and benefits package.
In addition, he purchased professional clothing and equipment and underwent medical examinations and obtained certifications required before assuming duty.
“In reliance on the agreement, I arranged my relocation from Butha-Buthe to Mohale’s Hoek, secured accommodation, engaged moving services, purchased professional attire and equipment, underwent the required medical examinations and certifications, and declined other employment opportunities because I had every reason to believe the contract would be honoured,” he says.
He estimates that those preparations cost him about M30,000.
However, events took what he describes as a dramatic turn on 30 September 2025, one day before he was scheduled to begin work.
Dr Jafeta alleges that he received an email from a PIH official, Ms Mabafokeng Mosae, informing him that the organisation was withdrawing the employment offer.
He says the decision came without prior warning, consultation or any lawful explanation.
“To my surprise and detriment, Partners in Health unilaterally revoked the offer on 30 September 2025, one day before I was due to commence employment. No valid reason, justification, prior notice or consultation was provided.”
Dr Jafeta argues that by then the employment contract had already come into existence and could not simply be withdrawn at PIH’s discretion.
He contends that the organisation’s conduct amounted to repudiation and an anticipatory breach of contract under Lesotho law.
“The unilateral revocation of the offer after my acceptance constituted a repudiation and anticipatory breach of contract. Such conduct is impermissible under Lesotho contract law and entitles me either to specific performance or damages.”
His damages claim is based primarily on projected income that he says he would have earned had the contract been honoured.
Although the contract did not specify a fixed duration, Dr Jafeta argues that it was an indefinite appointment and that he could reasonably have expected to remain employed for at least three years, given PIH’s continuing healthcare programmes.
On that basis, he claims M1,656,000 in lost earnings, calculated at M46,000 per month over 36 months.
He also seeks M331,200 for the estimated value of employment benefits over the same period, M30,000 for relocation and preparation expenses, M150,000 for opportunity costs after declining alternative employment, and M50,000 for emotional distress and other non-pecuniary losses.
The combined value of those claims amounts to M2,217,200, subject to any adjustment the court may consider appropriate.
“As a direct and foreseeable consequence of Partners in Health’s breach, I suffered loss of earnings, loss of employment benefits, relocation expenses, opportunity costs and emotional distress. The total damages claimed, subject to the court’s discretion, amount to M2,217,200.”
Dr Jafeta says the losses extend beyond immediate financial prejudice, arguing that the withdrawal disrupted his professional career and deprived him of the employment security he legitimately expected after accepting the offer.
He further argues that PIH frustrated the legitimate expectations created by its own written offer and subsequent acknowledgement of his acceptance.
Before approaching the High Court, Dr Jafeta says he attempted to resolve the dispute amicably through a formal letter of demand served by his legal representatives, requiring PIH either to reinstate him or compensate him within seven days.
He alleges that the organisation failed to respond.
“Prior to instituting these proceedings, I served Partners in Health with a letter of demand seeking reinstatement or compensation. The organisation failed and/or refused to comply, leaving me with no alternative but to approach this Honourable Court.”
He has therefore asked the High Court to order PIH to honour the employment contract by allowing him to assume duty with full back pay dating to 1 October 2025. If that relief is not granted, he wants the organisation ordered to pay the damages claimed.
