Mohloai Mpesi
OPPOSITION LEADER Mathibeli Mokhothu has strongly criticized Prime Minister Sam Matekane’s administration for its inability to tackle the country’s soaring unemployment rate and persistent corruption.
The official opposition leader claims that corruption has worsened under Mr Matekane with the cabinet reduced to a “tender committee” that awards projects to ministers and their cronies.
Speaking at a Democratic Congress (DC) rally in Matala Phase II on Sunday – in Maseru – Mr Mokhothu highlighted what he described as the recent disheartening scene in which more than 30 000 youths responded to an advert for only 500 soldier positions at the Lesotho Defence Force (LDF).
“There is a high unemployment rate. If there was a time Basotho have ever faced such levels of hunger, joblessness, and business collapse, it is now, under the rule of Matekane and his wealthy cronies” Mr Mokhothu said.
“The sight of thousands of young people queuing for a handful of jobs makes it clear that our country is in trouble but then Matekane and his rich friend have no solutions to offer….They lied to you that prosperity would rain upon you once you voted them into power.”
He criticized the government for lacking a clear plan to address unemployment, noting that there were at least 760 000 unemployed youths in Lesotho, part of the country’s estimated 2.3 million population.
“We have 760,000 unemployed youths in Lesotho. They look to the government for support, whether through public sector jobs or business opportunities. Government should be their solution,” Mr Mokhothu said.
“A capable government would have a strategy in place. They promised to create jobs in new firms—but what firms have they actually established in the three years Mr Matekane has been in office?”
Mr Mokhothu also accused the current administration of closing textile firms that were opened under former Prime Minister Pakalitha Mosisili, founding leader of the DC, further worsening the unemployment situation.
Premier Matekane, a billionaire businessman who entered politics in March 2022 by launching the ruling Revolution for Prosperity (RFP), saw his party win an impressive 57 constituencies in its debut at the October 2022 general elections.
The RFP, then only six months old, went on to lead a coalition government with several smaller parties.
Mr Matekane, who formed the party with his business associates—some now serving as cabinet ministers—won his landslide on the expectation that his success in business would see him lead a better government able to create prosperity for Basotho. But three years on, his government faces allegations of involvement in looting and corruption, just like its predecessors.
Several of his ministers have faced allegations of graft with the parliamentary Public Accounts Committee (PAC) going as far as recommending the dismissal of Minister of Public Works and Transport, Matjato Moteane, after his former architectural company benefited from an airport refurbishment project overseen by his ministry.
Addressing these allegations at a media briefing on Monday this week, Mr Matekane said, “I have heard rumours linking my ministers to corruption”. He then challenged “anyone with evidence to give it to me so that I can expel them and ensure they are prosecuted.”
Mr Mokhothu believes the Prime Minister has failed in fulfilling his promises and should just admit so. “What are these rich people doing in politics, if not for their own interests only?” He added, “They promised you jobs, where are these jobs? Their being in government is only to squander the public’s money. The prosperity they promised remains elusive”
Mr Mokhothu further criticized the government for closing factories that “Mr Mosisili opened, which employed thousands of people,” noting, “A lot of people are sitting at home, jobless. People have been lied to; that they will earn big salaries.”
“My question has always been, what are these people doing in politics when they are rich? Where are the houses promised to be built for factory workers? It is now three years in government, only two years remaining but they have nothing to show for it.”
The DC leader also pointed to the government’s “so-called” poverty alleviation projects, claiming, “The jobs are given only to a certain few. Again, the Maseru main circle is ‘refurbished’ every year with millions going to a favoured contrator. When will jobs be created for the public when money always goes to one contractor?”
Mr Mokhothu vowed his DC would win the next elections.
“With the way the leading parties in government are handling government matters, we are going to win the elections in 2028,” he said.
He added: “I warned you when we were heading to the 2022 general elections, that there will never be a time, not even once, when the rich people will rescue this country from the clutches of poverty”.
“This is the government of the rich, by the rich, for the rich. They gain benefits for themselves. They block all the projects that would financially help the public…. All they are doing is directing more riches to their pockets….”
Corruption
Mr Mokhothu also expressed deep concern over increasing corruption in Lesotho, highlighting the current controversies at the Lesotho Electricity Company (LEC) where millions have allegedly been squandered in corrupt deals.
The DC leader said corruption had worsened under Mr Matekane’s rule. His cabinet was like a “tender committee “that awards contracts to its own members”.
He said Mr Matekane’s ministers continued to acquire state contracts for themselves and their cronies, citing road construction tenders and those to purchase fertilisers and agricultural inputs, among others.
Mr Mokhothu also raised concerns about the government’s failure to efficiently provide identity cards to Basotho, noting that people, including pregnant women, were forced to sleep at the Home Affairs Department offices “just to receive IDs, with only 65 being processed per day”.
Additionally, he questioned the government’s response to the needs of people living with HIV and AIDS, especially after the United States withdrew its aid, leading to the loss of 625 jobs, with the potential loss of an additional 1,367 jobs.
He criticized the government for “not explaining how it plans to support those affected, as it has offered no solutions for people who have lost their jobs or for those needing assistance”.
