Bongiwe Zihlangu
DEMOCRATIC Congress (DC) leader, Mathibeli Mokhothu, has urged the Sam Matekane-led coalition government to reconsider its purge of civil servants saying the drive lacked a human face.
Mr Mokhothu said instead of rushing to fire civil servants in droves in its bid to curb the bloated wage bill and cut down on unnecessary spending, the government must instead invest heavily in the private sector.
This would make the sector resilient and able to create employment for people that the civil service cannot absorb, he said.
Responding to the 2023-2024 fiscal budget in parliament this week , Mr Mokhothu warned the government against angering Basotho via its spirited dismissal of public servants.
Such actions would drive a wedge between political leaders and the public, he said.
Mr Mokhothu, who is also the official Leader of the Opposition in Parliament, urged the government to exploit Lesotho’s natural resources and explore internal revenue generation streams to develop the country.
This would avoid reliance on the ever-declining Southern African Customs Union (SACU) receipts, he said.
“If we don’t create alternative revenue streams, we will be condemned to living from hand to mouth waiting on donations..,” he said.
Mr Mokhothu said the government must devise policies and legislation aimed at curbing spending, by investing less on recurrent expenditure and more on development.
“I’m aware that the government is trying to do its best to cut down the recurrent and increase the development budget by fighting the wage bill. When government feels that there is need to fight the wage bill, I support it. But the way in which they go about is what I find unacceptable.
“Mr Speaker, the government must not fight the wage bill by firing Basotho from the civil service….,” he said to much applause.
“Let us find means that are not harsh and will not lead to a fall-out between us and this nation,” he said.
“Here is an example, Mr Speaker. What must be done, which is easy, is for us to come up with a strategy to improve and invest in the private sector. That way, when a civil servant retires, we don’t have to fill their post. Even their children and grandchildren will be able to find employment in the private sector which we will have watered and nurtured. We must empower the private sector such that it is able to absorb the numbers of job-seeking Basotho that government cannot cater for.”
Mr Mokhothu further appealed to the government to exercise patience when embarking on its exercise to cut the wage bill, saying the move should not be used to punish Basotho.
“We must guard against approaching issues angrily and making rushed decisions in pursuit of change. Let us not be in a hurry to make changes to the public service. We cannot make rushed decisions today in the hope that change will come when we wake up the following day. Changes must have a human face,” he said.
The government has aggressively sought to downsize the civil service by firing workers whom it says were hired illegally in different ministries as well as imposing a freeze on new public service hirings.
Last week 75 Lesotho National Broadcasting Service (LNBS) employees were fired on the grounds that they were employed illegally.
Before that, a set of 198 Ministry of Trade, Industry, Business Development and Tourism employees were the first to be shown the door in January 2023 for similar reasons.
It is also likely that 3593 Home Affairs Department contractual employees will soon be fired. However, they have already warned the government, through a letter from their lawyer, that firing them would be unlawful.
The government has vowed to clean up the public service and promote transparent recruitment.
