LESOTHO’S health system is in crisis after the United States implemented drastic funding reductions to its HIV and healthcare programs causing the lose of hundreds of jobs with more expected. While Minister of Health Selibe Mochoboroane has on various occasions expressed confidence in Lesotho’s ability to overcome the challenges induced by the Donald Trump tsunami to […]
CHAIRPERSONS of the parliamentary Public Accounts Committees (PAC)s must be upstanding individuals of the highest moral character, free from corruption. This is vital to ensuring the integrity and effectiveness of the committee’s oversight duties. The role of the committee chair requires impartiality, integrity, and a steadfast commitment to public accountability. Their character and reputation […]
ASSET declaration, a critical tool for preventing corruption and ensuring transparency, accountability, and public trust, is a legal requirement for public officials to disclose their financial assets and interests. Asset declarations are designed to identify potential conflicts of interest and unjustified wealth, thereby deterring and detecting corruption among public servants. They also enhance overall transparency […]
DOCTORS, just like lawyers, judges, among other professionals, hold significant authority within society. We all seek their expertise and their presumed extensive knowledge of medicine to help us overcome ailments and live happy, healthy lives. Upon entering a doctor’s room, we should all experience a sense of relief and optimism that our health concerns will […]
A PASSPORT is a basic right for every citizen. It is the document that guarantees the constitutional right to freedom of movement, unless there are justifiable limitations of limiting such a right, such as when a person commits crime and is barred from travelling abroad. For countries with no economic prospects for their citizens such […]
THE recent interrogation of the National University of Lesotho (NUL) Pension Fund Board of Trustees by parliament’s Public Accounts Committee (PAC) has laid bare the pension fund industry’s general chronic rot, corruption and incompetence. It has also exposed a syndicate that has corruptly consolidated itself in the Public Officers’ Defined Contribution Pension Fund (PODCPF) for […]
THE spike in human trafficking in Lesotho, instilling fear in the nation and courting the attention of not only development partners but the whole world, is a reality we cannot wish away. And, at the heart of the human trafficking scourge in Lesotho, are two primary socio-economic factors: high unemployment especially among the youth and […]
VOTER registers are often a key source of disputed elections across Africa, with electoral authorities often accused of using defecting rolls to rig elections, mostly in favour of incumbent ruling parties. Fortunately, despite our own defective voters register, successive Independent Electoral Commissions (IECs) in Lesotho have been able to deliver free, credible elections which […]
NEWLY appointed Commissioner of Police, Borotho Matsoso, might just be what the Lesotho Mounted Police Service (LMPS) needed to get back into shape. Or at best, the strong hand needed at this time, to remould the LMPS into a fit for purpose organisation. He does not carry the baggage of having served under, or been […]
BASOTHO must be relieved that former Lesotho Mounted Police Service (LMPS) boss, Holomo Molibeli, has hit the road. His six years at the LMPS’s helm marked a dark period of torture and numerous civilian deaths at the hands of the police. Criminals were allowed to run rampant, in the process landing Lesotho at number six […]
MINISTER of Trade, Industry and Business Development, Mokhethi Shelile’s reluctance for wholesale implementation of the controversial Business Licensing Regulations, 2020, is not only admirable, it demonstrates his deep knowledge and understanding of business and how the world works in the 21st century. The Regulations which seek to preserve certain economic sectors for Basotho are not only deplorable, they […]
THE sexual harassment complaint by WASCO’s Public Relations Manager, Lineo Moqasa, against Chief Executive Officer, Thelejane Thelejane, could have been handled much better at the state-owned utility. The WASCO board of directors, chaired by Mr Sekete Phohlo, appears to have failed miserably. Despite promising to probe the case and issue a determination, Mr Phohlo’s […]
The unfolding disturbing political events in Lesotho snowballing from the no-confidence motion against Prime Minister Sam Matekane should prompt Basotho into some serious soul searching about why we can’t seem to get our political house in order 57 years after independence. We just cannot continue like this. Year after year, political squabbles take centre stage […]
ALLEGATIONS that Prime Minister Sam Matekane’s government is misusing the army to fight political battles should not be taken lightly and dismissed as mere rhetoric. These very serious accusations were made at the weekend by Democratic Congress leader, Mathibeli Mokhothu, and had an ominous, if familiar, ring to them capable of pushing Lesotho to the […]
This week two ruling Revolution for Prosperity (RFP) legislators, Mahali Phamotse and Thuso Makhalanyane, approached the courts of law, seeking that their six-year suspension from their party be declared unlawful and nullified. This development came after the outspoken duo was charged with failure to protect their party’s interests when they voted against the RFP-led government […]
THE country’s much awaited reforms process, which has been moving at a snail’s pace, is now saddled with new hurdles. It could be delayed further if the Constitutional Court upholds activist and MISA-Lesotho chairperson Kananelo Boloetse’s bid to interdict parliament from sitting next Monday. Mr Boloetse argues that Parliament cannot be recalled to consider the […]
We cannot afford more delays LESOTHO’s reforms process that has been moving at a snail’s pace could be delayed by yet another blow, if the Constitutional Court upholds activist and MISA-Lesotho Chairperson Kananelo Boloetse’s argument that parliament cannot be recalled from its winter recess to transact business relating to the revival of the Omnibus Bill. […]
In our previous two editions, we have reported in detail about how a M280 million investment project is now stalled due to the corporate skullduggery of a woman who, instead of managing the investment on behalf of an international financial services conglomerate responsible for it, is now trying to steal the entire project for herself. Her unmitigated […]
WE join the nation in congratulating His Majesty King Letsie III on reaching his 60th birthday (diamond jubilee) milestone. And for him in particular, the old cliché that “we wish you many more” is most befitting. We wish we could have him forever. Lesotho is always a far better place in His Majesty’s blessed and […]
IT is a no-brainer that Section 6 of the Constitution guarantees every person a right to liberty. Furthermore, in terms of section 12(2)(a) of the Constitution, “every person accused of a criminal offence shall be presumed to be innocent until he is proven guilty”. In addition to that, section 109 of the Criminal Procedure and […]
LESOTHO this week joins the rest of the world in commemorating International Women’s Day. The day serves as a focal point in the women’s rights movement, bringing attention to issues such as gender equality, reproductive rights, and violence and abuse against women. This year’s event is being celebrated under the theme ‘DigitALL: Innovation and technology for gender equality’. To […]
THE continued high incidences of murder and other violent crimes in Lesotho have ensured that the country maintains its dubious moniker as the “murder capital of Africa”. It’s hardly a record to be proud of. Moreso at a time the country is crying for foreign capital. We have become a soulless nation with no […]
WE have never for a second ever thought that new Prime Minister Sam Matekane is under any illusions about the difficult task that lies ahead of him to pull this country out of the giant abyss of corruption, decay and consequent penury. But if ever he needed any reminders, the latest missive from Frazer […]
FORMER Prime Minister Thomas Thabane’s imminent exit from his beloved All Basotho Convention (ABC) presents his party colleagues with an excellent opportunity to plot a new path in terms of rejuvenating the ailing party and carving out new policies to make it attractive again. But they can only do that if they decide to eschew […]
IN its last edition for 2021, the Sunday Express reported on former Prime Minister and current All Basotho Convention (ABC) leader Thomas Thabane’s attempts to pre-empt court processes by submitting a bail application before he had even been formally charged and asked to plead to charges that he orchestrated the murder of his ex-wife. Mr […]
IN a highly usual development, Development Planning Minister Selibe Mochoboroane has made sensational corruption allegations against Prime Minister Moeketsi Majoro. We must state from the onset that we hold no brief for Mr Mochoboroane, Dr Majoro or any politician for that matter. Ours is simply to be the eyes and ears of the nation. We […]
THE festive season is upon us. In a week or so, thousands of Basotho will be streaming into the country, mainly from South Africa, for the Christmas and New Year holidays. No one begrudges them quality time with their loved ones particularly after a hard year due to the ravages of the Covid-19 pandemic. But […]
TODAY is 2 December 2021 and that means we are officially in the festive season. Worryingly, the festive season is starting when Southern Africa, Lesotho included, is faced with another wave of Covid-19 infections. Even more worrying is the discovery of the Omicron variant whose traits are still but new to our scientists. That several […]
HOW much longer will this country continue to suffer due to politicians and public officials who put their own selfish, parochial interests above the nation? We ask this question in light of the disturbing reports of infighting within the National Reforms Authority (NRA). As we report elsewhere in this edition, the body which is tasked […]
Royal Palace project: A case study on how not to run a country
THE latest audit by Auditor-General, ‘Mathabo Makenete, into the Royal Palace project is yet another embarrassing illustration of the misgovernance that continues to afflict Lesotho, with seemingly no end in sight. For more than a decade, fourteen years to be exact, the project is nowhere near completion and continues to bleed the public purse, […]