News

Leemisa Thuseho  LESOTHO’S first ranked chess player, Lebajoa Tšephe, dominated the 2024 National University of Lesotho (NUL) Open Rapid and Blitz Chess Championship over the weekend.  Tšephe was the top performer, winning both categories: the rapid and blitz sections.  This year’s edition was held at Netherlands Hall on the NUL campus.  The main difference between […]

Mohloai Mpesi  PROMINENT business tycoon and pastor, Thakadu David Ramela, widely known as Bishop Ramela, has been controversially awarded a lucrative fertilizer tender despite his price being double the cost of other bidders for the supply of the Top-Dressing Type I fertilizer.  His company, Ramela and Associates, has been awarded the M10,119,265 million contract using the selective tendering method, a move that has raised eyebrows.  Selective tenders – instead of open […]

—accused of making racial slurs against Indian, Chinese and Pakistanis  Staff Reporter  MEMBERS of the parliamentary Public Accounts Committee (PAC) have been accused of xenophobia after they stormed the premises of a prominent businessman of Pakistani descent and harassed his workers and tenants.  The PAC members made the xenophobic attacks on 31 October 2024 against businessman, Saaqib Abdulla, while inspecting […]

Mohloai Mpesi  MAIN opposition leader, Mathibeli Mokhothu, has slammed a Revolution for Prosperity (RFP) legislator who has complained about the Ministry of Education and Training’s decision to award school feeding tenders worth a whopping M240 million to four members of the Democratic Congress (DC).  Mr Mokhothu told a press conference yesterday that it was ludicrous […]

Mohloai Mpesi  MINISTER of Local Government, Chieftainship, Home Affairs and Police, Lebona Lephema, has been accused of abusing state resources to advance his political interests.  This after the parliamentary Public Accounts Committee (PAC) this week slammed the minister for “issuing a directive” to have the government’s machinery used to develop a new football pitch for Lioli […]

—as one of his schemes which cost CGM US$11 million is outlined  Staff Reporter  ONE of the charges against Madhav Vasant Dalvi – the fugitive former director of textile giant CGM Group – is orchestrating an elaborate scheme to siphon over USD$11 million (about M210 million) from the company.  According to the company’s finance manager, Rodney Esther, one of […]

  Hopolang Mokhopi  MURDER accused Lintle Letima, who allegedly fatally stabbed his “ex-boyfriend”, Motseki Kholotsa, has claimed she never intended to kill the love of her life for whom she is carrying a child.    Contrary to eye witness and police statements, Letima claimed she stabbed Kholotsa mistakenly on 8 November 2024 after he tried […]

Hopolang Mokhopi  THE Lesotho National Federation of Organisations of the Disabled (LNFOD) has raised concerns about the rampant abuse faced by people with disabilities, particularly the rape of minors.  This after a 27-year-old Quthing man, Moshe Sake, was charged by the Quthing Magistrates Court last week for raping a 10-year-old girl with a disability.  Sake appeared […]

Mathatisi Sebusi  IN a continued effort to combat corruption among civil servants, the Directorate on Corruption and Economic Offences (DCEO) has requested that all procurement officers at state-owned organisations declare their assets by the end of this month.  The Lesotho Times has seen a letter from the DCEO’s Director General, Advocate Knorx Molelle, dated 11 November 2024, […]

Mathatisi Sebusi  THE Lesotho Highlands Development Authority (LHDA) is at odds with the community it relocated to Ha Tsolo in Maseru to pave way for its first water project.  The community was relocated from Ha Katse in Thaba Tseka between 1997 and 1998 to pave way for the construction of Katse Dam under Phase I of the Lesotho Highlands Water Project.  […]

Mathatisi Sebusi  THE Water and Sewage Company (WASCO) has been grilled by the Natural Resource Cluster Committee over its failure to connect water supplies to the Ha Matholoana community and its surrounding villages despite funds being set aside for the project.  Ha Matholoana and the other 19 villages are located along pipelines that transfer water from Metolong Dam to Maseru and Morija, among […]

Hopolang Mokhopi  STANDARD Lesotho Bank (SLB) has held its inaugural Supplier Symposium 2024, celebrating a milestone in collaboration, partnership, and sustainable growth with its suppliers.  The event was themed: “Driving sustainable and inclusive economic growth in partnership with our suppliers, clients, and stakeholders”.  The symposium, which took place this week in Maseru, aimed to foster […]

Staff Reporter  IN a heartfelt plea for greater support for the arts, veteran South African actress, Lillian Dube, has appealed to the Lesotho government to invest in and nurture the country’s rich cultural tapestry.  Speaking at the recent launch of Endurance film, the brainchild of renowned local actress, and communications specialist, Matšeliso Mohale, Ms Dube […]

Seithati Motšoeneng  SENTEBALE GAP Funeral Services has made a significant impact by donating various vegetable seeds to the Butha-Buthe correctional facility.   The donation, which was made on October 29, 2024, stems from a direct appeal by the Commissioner of Prisons, Mating Nkakala, who sought essential seeds to enhance agricultural production within the rehabilitation centre.  Senior […]

Seithati Motsoeneng  THE Limkokwing University of Creative Technology (LUCT) has equipped its public relations (PR) third-year students with skills to build resilience in navigating the cyber world and operating in the media.   The event, themed “Utilising social media for effective PR and media success,” focused on equipping students with essential skills and knowledge for careers in the media.  It was held yesterday […]

Moroke Sekoboto  MICRO lender, Thusong Financial Services (TFS), has launched a campaign aimed at promoting financial literacy and inclusion among Basotho.  Titled ‘Show Me the Money’, the campaign kicked off on 1 November and will run for three months until 31 January 2025.  The initiative focuses on improving lives, educating the public about financial literacy, and giving back […]

as MP Moshe Makotoko allegedly oversaw temporary staff recruitment  After Minister Lephema removed human resources director out of office  Mohloai Mpesi  Damning revelations have emerged over the “corrupt” recruitment process for 3400 temporary staff at the Ministry of Local Government, Chieftainship, Home Affairs, and Police.  The process was allegedly led by Moshe Makotoko, the Revolution […]

Mohloai Mpesi  THE National Identity Card (Amendment) Bill 2024, which aims to halt the expiration of identity cards, did not proceed to its second reading in the National Assembly earlier this week.  The Bill, introduced by Thabiso Lekitla, a Democratic Congress (DC) legislator from Mekaling, as a private member’s Bill, seeks to amend the National […]

Mohloai Mpesi  THE Directorate on Corruption and Economic Offences (DCEO) says it is still pursuing the fertiliser fraud case against Peka constituency legislator, Mohopoli Monokoane, despite reports that it has dropped the case.  Mr Monokoane had celebrated with his supporters on Tuesday, declaring that he was a free man as the DCEO would not be charging him. But the antigraft body has since contradicted his claims.  […]

Bongiwe Zihlangu  DEPUTY Commissioner of Police (DCP), Mahlape Morai, has instructed traffic officers to desist from harassing motorists by illegally impounding their vehicles and confiscating their drivers’ licences and motor vehicle registration documents as collateral to compel them to report to the police.  Vehicles should only be seized when they are needed as evidence in […]

Moorosi Tsiane  A TOP lawyer has urged Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP), Hlalefang Motinyane, to improve her office’s competences in handling criminal cases to ensure justice for victims of crime.  This follows a number of Court of Appeal judgments last week that exposed shortcomings in her office’s handling of cases.  Top lawyer and former Deputy Prime Minister, Advocate Kelebone Maope KC, emphasised the […]

 Moroke Sekoboto   LOCAL motorists are feeling the pinch of this week’s fuel hike.  Petrol 93 increased by 30 cents per litre, while petrol 95, diesel 50, and illuminating paraffin, each rose by 45 cents per litre.  The higher fuel prices announced by the Petroleum Fund this week came into effect yesterday after two months (September and […]

Moorosi Tsiane  THE murder trial of former army commander Tlali Kamoli, in connection with the 2015 murder of Lieutenant General (Lt-Gen) Maaparankoe Mahao, stalled on Tuesday after his lawyer, Advocate Letuka Molati, informed the court that Kamoli was unfit to stand trial because of an illness.  Advocate Molati claimed that Lesotho Correctional Service (LCS) officers had refused to take […]

  Moroke Sekoboto  THE Ministry of Health, through its Department of Pharmaceuticals, has urged the public to use medicines safely and to report any side effects that they may feel after taking medications.  Marelebohile Mabuzela, a representative from that department, said using medicines correctly could significantly reduce the risk of side effects and serious harm.  […]

Seithati Motšoeneng  LOCAL musicians can finally celebrate a significant development: their music will now earn royalties from commercial use.  This was formalised through a government gazette issued on Monday, which outlines the new tariffs for those using Basotho musicians’ works registered with the Lesotho Copyright Society of Authors (LESCOSA).  The tariffs apply to a wide […]

…Providing significant relief for developing countries  Seithati Motšoeneng  In a bold strategic move to empower low-income countries in overcoming the economic fallout from the COVID-19 pandemic and climate change, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) has decisively announced a 36 percent reduction in borrowing costs.  This significant decrease which took effect on November 1 2024, translates […]

Hopolang Mokhopi  THE World Health Organisation (WHO) has released guidelines, known as Preferred Product Characteristics (PPC), for blood-based diagnostic tests for Alzheimer’s disease (AD).  Developed with a group of 20 leading scientists, these guidelines aim to help create affordable and effective tests suitable for global use, including in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs).  The PPC […]

DCEO seeks arrest warrants  Amid bad faith accusations  Moorosi Tsiane  THE M280 million fraud and money laundering case involving collapsed micro-lender, Platinum Credit, has taken a new twist with the Directorate on Corruption and Economic Offences (DCEO) seeking arrest warrants against the company’s international investors while negotiating to have their two alleged local accomplices off the […]

Mathatisi Sebusi  THE government has reportedly incurred a loss of M49 million, with potential for even more losses, after the Lesotho Electricity Company (LEC) allegedly engaged an underqualified contractor for the Ha Belo electrification project.  According to a confidential report by an engineer commissioned by the Ministry of Energy, the contractor lacked the necessary skills to execute […]