Ntsebeng Motsoeli
A fight over who will become the official leader of the opposition in parliament is brewing between former deputy prime ministers Monyane Moleleki and Mothetjoa Metsing’s parties.
Mr Metsing who served as deputy prime minister under former prime minister Thomas Thabane from 2012 to 2015 and again from 2015 to 2017 under Pakalitha Mosisili, leads the Lesotho Congress for Democracy (LCD). Mr Moleleki served as deputy prime minister under Mr Thabane from 2017 to 11 May 2020. He leads the Alliance of Democrats (AD) which is now in opposition after the collapse of the Thabane regime over a fortnight ago.
The LCD says its leader is entitled to the post because it won more votes in the June 2017 elections than the AD.
The office of the official leader of the opposition comes with lucrative perks including a salary, two motor vehicles and official security.
It was left vacant after Democratic Congress (DC) leader Mathibeli Mokhothu’s appointment as deputy prime minister on 20 May 2020. This after Mr Mokhothu’s DC agreed a deal with the ruling All Basotho Convention (ABC) to form a new government to replace Messrs Thabane and Moleleki’s coalition.
Normally, the post is given to the opposition leader with the largest number of seats. This time there is a unique situation where both the AD and LCD have an equal number of seats at 11 legislators apiece.
Over the weekend, Mr Metsing told the Lesotho Times’ sister Sunday Express newspaper that the speaker of parliament, Sephiri Motanyane, would soon decide who, between him and Mr Moleleki should be the leader of the opposition. Mr Motanyane was not reachable this week to comment on the matter.
But LCD spokesperson Apesi Ratšele is adamant Mr Metsing should be given the post because all the LCD seats were garnered in the 3 June 2017 elections while those of the AD included “a patchwork of seats obtained from defections from another party”.
This was in reference to legislators Tlohelang Aumane and Mothepu Mahapa who won the Semena and Tele constituencies respectively on a DC ticket before jumping ship to join the AD. Mr Aumane was rewarded with the post of Development Planning minister in the previous government while Mr Mahapa was appointed deputy minister of Education and Training.
“That position has to be given to the LCD. The LCD has higher numbers of overall voters than the AD,” Mr Ratšele told the Lesotho Times this week.
“The proportional representation seats are calculated according to the overall number of people who voted for a party and we got our 11 seats because a combined total of 52 000 people voted for the LCD in the last elections.
“They (AD) had fewer seats than us until two MPs defected from the DC because they were eying the ministerial positions which they have now lost. The AD had a combined 39 000 votes. Even if we included the votes for the two MPs who defected from the DC, their (AD’s) overall number of votes would still be less than ours.
“It is our conclusion that our numbers are higher than those of AD and so we deserve that post of leader of opposition,” he said.
AD spokesperson Thuso Litjobo said Messrs Metsing and Moleleki should not be fighting over the post but should instead work together as they were now in the opposition. He said the two opposition leaders had to meet soon and agree on who should be given the post before informing Mr Motanyane of their decision.
“This is the first time that opposition parties have equal representation and it cannot be automatically determined who the leader of the opposition in parliament should be.
“The LCD and the AD are one thing now. We are the opposition. So, it does not matter to us which of the two leaders takes the post. What is important is that the post should be filled and the incumbent should do his job,” Mr Litjobo said.
