What do you do when you encounter a complete ignoramus and a completely brainless moron masquerading as a deputy foreign affairs minister? What do you do when you encounter a charlatan and zombie masquerading as a former home affairs minister? What do you do when you encounter an idiot purporting to be a deputy leader of a political party that barely wins a single parliamentary constituency seat in elections and survives by hanging on to the coattails of other decent political formations?
What do you do when confronted with the prosaic mindlessness of a man, whose only significant contribution to society is to be the running dog for a criminal like Yan Xie (aka John)? After all, the old adage suggests that we should never argue with fools as spectators might not notice the difference.
The first instinct is to want to just ignore such a person on account of their absolute worthlessness as both a politician and human being. But history teaches us differently. The world is littered with cases of dud-headed political zombies who were left unchecked and proceeded to cause untold suffering and mayhem.
Just think of the destruction wrought to Uganda by Idi Amin when he victimized the 300 000 Indians who were the anchor of that country’s economy in the 1970s. After expelling them in one big swoop, he transferred their assets to his tribesmen. But the tribesmen’s only expertise at the time was to mould dagga pots and tea-cups. As they say, the rest is history. Uganda is yet to recover from Amin’s wretchedness.
It is against that background that it may not be wise to ignore the foolish antics of a mini Idi-Amin like our very own professional buffoon that christens itself as Machesetsa Mofomobe, or Mofomobe Machesetsa or whatever. I don’t really know what is its first name or surname.
Before I proceed, it’s worth mentioning that despite all his frailties, Joang Molapo is a decent man. After all, none of us is perfect. We all have our weaknesses. I have occasionally taken aim at Ntate Molapo for being Nikuved during his time at Home Affairs, when we thought he would help Lesotho clear up one of the greatest corruption scandals ever; the Nikuv project to print passports and IDs.
This project, corruptly awarded to the Israeli firm, Nikuv, during the Mosisili era has been running at huge expense to Basotho. It has been very costly. Ntate Molapo promised to clear it up during his tenure at Home Affairs in the first Motsoahae coalition. He failed. He was Nikuved. I have also taken umbrage with Ntate Molapo for his excursion to Paris to effectively nap and return without attending a single session of the Unesco workshop that he had gone there for.
All the while after collecting a hefty per diem from treasury. But despite these and other failures, Ntate Molapo is a decent man. Smartly dressed all the time, he is well spoken, erudite, sagacious, eloquent and well educated. He would have been a decent future leader of the so-called Basotho National Party (BNP).
By opting to boot out this man as deputy leader and replace him with the crap that they put in that position, the BNP effectively authored their demise. The unlamentable and profoundly stupid Mofomobe is not only unfit for purpose. He is an unmitigated disaster. No one takes the BNP seriously anymore.
Come 2022, it faces obliteration from the political scene. It may not even scrap the few seats it has always scrapped to remain as a junior partner in coalitions. On its own, the BNP will never lead any government. Thank God for that. There are more chances of a joint collision of Mars, Earth and Sun than of a BNP led government or coalition in Lesotho.
Back to Mofomobe. For the record, I always try by all means to respect people by pre-fixing their names with Ntate. But I make an exception for Mofomobe. He is not worth any respect.
You would have thought that being a deputy foreign minister would at least coax him into behaving with a bit of decorum. But no. A moron will always be a moron.
You would have seen or heard his diatribe against makoerekoere, who he claims owns this newspaper. This after we published a story exposing the shameless looting of public money at the now rightly disbanded National Emergency Command Centre (NECC) that was led by his leader, Ntate Thesele ‘Maseribane. Thanks to the sterling efforts of whistleblowers and to the indefatigable efforts of our Basotho journalists, we now know that the NECC was a cradle for corruption and a piggy bank for looters.
Where in this world my fellow Basotho, will you ever find justification for purchasing four gas heaters and four electric heaters for nearly R200 000? How in this world can it ever be justified that M10 million is blown on food and luxuries while frontline health care workers have no basic masks to protect themselves? How and where in this world can it ever be justified that M161 million is blown without addressing many of the basic issues that the NECC was established for? Only three weeks back health care workers were on strike for lack of personal protective equipment (PPE)? No visible effort to fight Covid-19 was ever made by the spendthrift NECC. Yet its first act was to budget for hefty food allocations for its staffers?
We would be irresponsible as a newspaper to ignore all that rot. We would be irresponsible to ignore such open looting of our resources by whoever. This country is hopelessly poor. It resembles a medieval city; thanks to corruption and ravenous politicians and their unashamed looting. Thanks to bad governance; thanks to many other vices.
Mofomobe was miffed because the story carrids the picture of Ntate ‘Maseribane. For him, everything was honky-dorey at the NECC despite all evidence to the contrary. The crime of this “makoerekoere owned newspaper” — according to Mofomobe — was to mention Ntate ‘Maseribane’s name and put his photograph to the story yet there is “no evidence mentioned in the story” that Ntate ‘Maseribane was involved in the looting.
But hey you idiot, the story never accused any specific individual of looting. That information is yet to be exposed. The story merely exposed the looting of funds at the NECC as per the payment schedule it submitted to Treasury. Ntate ‘Maseribane may or may not have been part of the looting.
It may have been any other person or persons. We anxiously wait for that infor. Which is why there is need for a through probe. Basotho have a right to know who approved the purchase orders and who got what kick-backs at their expense. Our story only exposed the looting because that is the information had at the time of publication.
Ntate ‘Maseribane’s picture was used because he was mentioned in the story and he was the chairperson of the NECC at the time of the looting. The story did not accuse him of any looting. So contrary to Mofomobe’s stupid claims, there was no need to furnish any evidence against him.
As stated, information about who looted what is best adduced in comprehensive investigations. It remains to be seen whether the government embarks on such or whether it sweeps the whole matter under the carpet. Ordinary Basotho, who pay the price for graft, are watching. Ntate ‘Maseribane was also mentioned with respect to statements he had previously made as chairman of the NECC.
Remember his explanations to the media after an original budget of the NECC was leaked showing they intended to buy a single non-contact thermometer for M500 000 yet it costs a mere M650.
It’s a basic journalistic tenet that anyone mentioned in a story can have their picture used to accompany that story. But don’t mention that to Mofomobe — the fountain of vulgarity and loutishness. He entangles himself into things he knows nothing about.
Ultimately, Ntate ‘Maseribane would have to take responsibility for all the rot that happened at the NECC. Even if he did not steal any money himself directly, he was the chairperson of that body. He should have ensured probity, frugality and thrift at the NECC. There is thus no escaping his name when the issue of the NECC and its failures are mentioned.
Equally poignant was his failure to address the substance of the story. By rushing to support Mofomobe instead of clarifying patently serious mishaps at the NECC when he led it, he lost the plot. His actions confirmed he is also utterly xenophobic. There is no hope for the BNP.
The biggest trouble is that Mofomobe purports to be a deputy minister of foreign affairs.
How does he therefore engage with all the makoerekoeres he will encounter in the course of his work, since he hates them so much. Thank God, he doesn’t have to interact with any makoerekoeres because he is not known for doing much work. He is the laziest deputy minister ever. Remember his tenure at Home Affairs.
He was a regular feature at decrepit B&Bs, doing the only things he is best known for and that he is all good at. That was perhaps his understanding of “home affairs”. Either that or he was always busy running errands for Yan Xie (John) in return for the little trinkets he needed to rent the B&Bs.
Thank God again, being deputy minister is his ceiling. He can never go beyond that. And with the BNP journeying towards complete oblivion, after his “election” as deputy leader, we are also seeing the last of this fool.
But the fool cannot be allowed to get away with murder.
It needs to be reminded of the immense role that makoerekoere have played in this country to benefit his tepid political career.
- When Mofomobe and his leader, Ntate ‘Maseribane, fled the country at the height of Tlali Kamoli’s excesses, the makoerekoere, he so much loathes, did run away. They remained in the country and confronted the then regime on his behalf. Some of them got shot and nearly killed over their steadfast defence of principals. It was because of the work of this newspaper and its syndicated international partners that resulted in all the interventions that ended the LDF excesses and caused the BNP’s return to power on the coattails of the ABC.
- It was the work of this newspaper that enabled Mofomobe’s return to earn a deputy ministerial salary and to become Yan Xie (John)’s runner again so his escapades at B&Bs could be well oiled.
- It was at the offices of this “makoerekoere owned newspaper” that Mofomobe fled to when the then murderous security forces where in hot pursuit of him and could have easily harmed him. We protected him at our offices and risked all for him.
- It is makoerekoere who have intervened in this country at critical stages of history. When he — as a youth leader of the BNP — in the 1990s was perpetrating murderous mayhem in the country and killing people, it was none other than koerekoere Robert Mugabe who — as a leader in SADC — initiated interventions that saved this country from BNP inspired anarchy and restored normalcy.
- Only recently, there was a standby force of SADC — entirely comprising of makoerekoere. They were here to help stabilize this country. Were it not for their efforts, mayhem would have ensued.
- The next time there is mayhem in the country — thanks to the never-ending antics of foolish politicians like Mofomobe — Lesotho will again run to makoerekore for help. It won’t run to Yan Xie and his ilk for help.
The sooner all these facts sinks into Mofomobe’s barren head the better.
As this column has argued before. And as it will argue now and in the future, Lesotho desperately needs more qualified and more astute makoerekoeres to set up shop here and create job opportunities. The greatest and biggest economy in the world — the United States — was built by immigrants.
The makoerekoeres who have invested in the media in this country have every reason to be proud. They have not only created quality sustainable jobs in the media, they have transformed what was once a staid and embarrassing media sector.
I urge them not to even be worried or bothered by Mofomobe and Ntate ‘Maseribane’s xenophobia. Here is a man (Mofomobe) who has never run anything in his wretched life. Here is a man who has never created a single job. Here is a man who is not only a clown but a national embarrassment. Thank God for Covid. It means he is unable to travel and embarrass the country — as a deputy minister of foreign affairs — at international fora.
But let it him know that this “makoerekoere owned newspaper” will never give him a free ride. We owe our existence to nobody. Anyone who reads this paper attests to its professionalism.
Which is why his attempts to tie our owners to the State House faction of the ABC are as stupid as the man himself. Anyone who follows the news will of course know that nobody has demanded justice for Lipolelo as much as this newspaper has done. We do the bidding for nobody. We fight for justice.
In the same vein, we are demanding justice for Khaliso Soro, the Home Affairs procurement officer who was killed for his integrity and refusal to be corrupted on behalf of the likes of Yan Xie and their cohorts.
The full story of his murder is yet to be told. And it shall be told. That’s why our motto is No Fear No Favour. And that is why we will never be intimidated by fools?
And the ABC MPs clamouring for the BNP removal from the current coalition are right after all.
Ache!!!
