’Marafaele Mohloboli
THE OPPOSITION bloc, comprising the All Basotho Convention, Alliance for Democrats (AD), Basotho National Party (BNP) and Reformed Congress of Lesotho (RCL) parties has reaffirmed its coalition pact ahead of a mooted no confidence vote on government when parliament reconvenes tomorrow.
The parties announced the move at a press conference held at AME Hall in Maseru on Tuesday, adding the no confidence vote was the best way of effecting regime change without having to hold costly elections that would drain the fiscus.
In a statement read by ABC leader Thomas Thabane, the bloc called on the leader of the house who is also Deputy Prime Minister, Mothetjoa Metsing to convene the Business Committee today in order to prepare and adopt the business of the House for tomorrow when parliament re-opens.
“We also pledge to Basotho and the followers of all the parties who will be spearheading the motion of ‘no confidence’ to accept Mr Monyane Moleleki as the Prime Minister for the first 18 months of government, while I will take over for 18 months thereafter,” Dr Thabane said.
The announcement came against the background of an agreement the-then tripartite opposition bloc signed in November 2016 with Mr Moleleki while he was still Democratic Congress (DC) deputy leader to form a GNU to replace the current government.
After a failed bid to wrest control of the DC, Mr Moleleki subsequently jumped ship to form the AD in December 2016, taking with him several members of parliament.
Seventy one legislators attended the Tuesday press conference, amid indications that there were three more who missed the event due to other commitments.
The figure includes DC proportional representation (PR) MPs who are said to be AD sympathisers namely, Ralechate ’Mokose, Retšelisitsoe Masenyetse, Kose Makoa, Refiloe Litjobo, Rethabile Marumo, ’Maboiketlo Maliehe and ’Mamosa Molapo.
The opposition also pleaded with “those in government to help maintain peace in Lesotho”.
They also called on the international community to help in the implementation of the recommendations of the Justice Mpaphi Phumaphi-led SADC commission of inquiry aimed at ensuring stability and the rule of law in the country.
Meanwhile Mr Metsing’s Private Secretary, Lesolle Phalatse said the opposition had no right to tell the leader of the House when to convene the Business Committee.
“Procedurally and traditionally a press conference is not one of the methods used to call parliamentary business, so this is to say that what they did was just a publicity stunt,” Mr Phalatse said.
