Mohloai Mpesi
OPPOSITION leader, Mathibeli Mokhothu, and Basotho National Party (BNP) leader Machesetsa Mofomobe, say they want to bridge longstanding ideological differences between congress and national political parties in Lesotho.
Speaking at Pitso Ground in Maseru this week ahead of a soccer tournament organised by the two parties to commemorate Moshoeshoe day, the two leaders, said their aim was to unite the Basotho nation.
The BNP and its splinter parties, have always butted heads with parties founded on the congress ideology.
The animosity began with founding BNP leader, former Prime Minister Leabua Jonathan, and his political nemesis, former Premier Ntsu Mokhehle, who founded the first congress party in Lesotho, the Basutoland Congress Party (BCP).
Messrs Mofomobe and Mokhothu said it was vital to rest the feud between the congress and nationalist parties and avoid dividing the nation along ideological lines as per the ethos of the nation’s founder, King Moshoeshoe I.
The differences between the congress and nationalist parties are however mostly underpinned by personality clashes between the founding leaders of the two political strands and their successors. They are not defined by real policy issues as the manifestos of both the congress and nationalist parties are characterised by similar promises to improve the lot of Basotho.
The football games were hosted by the DC and BP and supported by Matlakeng legislator, Mahali Phamotse’s United African Transformation (UAT) and Malichaba Lekhoaba’s United for Change (UFC). The officials of the various parties, including Mr Mokkhothu, and their supporters played in the games.
As the soccer tournament proceeded, another significant event was unfolding in Thaba-Bosiu, where His Majesty King Letsie III and Prime Minister Sam Matekane, were laying wreaths on Moshoeshoe I’s grave.
The opposition were nowhere in sight and would later complain that for two years in a row Mr Matekane’s government had not given them recognition, and persistently ignored to invite them to significant national events.
Mr Mokhothu, the official leader of the opposition, confirmed to the Lesotho Times yesterday that the government had not formally invited him to the official Moshoeshoe Day commemorations in Thaba-Bosiu on Monday.
The DC leader said he had raised his concerns in the National Assembly this week and the government had apologised.
Government spokesperson, Thabo Sekonyela, could not be reached for comment on why the official leader of the opposition was not being invited to official events.
Mr Mokhothu told the gathering that he and Mr Mofomobe, and other opposition political parties had forged a bond that had ended their long-drawn out past brawls.
Mr Mokhothu said Lesotho needed better leaders who were unselective and worked for the poor.
He accused Mr Matekane’s government of “ignoring” the poor people as “insignificant”, focusing instead on uplifting the already rich.
However, Mr Mokhothu said the DC’ leadership values were rooted in the political beliefs of King Moshoeshoe I, which he described as being centred on creating “government of the people, for the people, by the people” and not “a government of the rich, for the rich, by the rich.”
“I am happy that a long political battle between DC and BNP has come to an end, with the sole intent to unite this nation. I am sure that Moshoeshoe I, Leabua Jonathan and Ntsu Mokhehle, are happy when they see their nation united like this,” Mr Mokhothu said.
Mr Mokhothu, who is a former deputy-prime minister under ex-premier Moeketsi Majoro’s coalition government, said that he had worked “comfortably” with Mr Mofomobe as Minister of Small Business Development.
“So, if today there are people who think they can separate us, they are joking. They forget that we both come from Quthing District. We cannot come all the way from Quthing and fight when we get to Maseru,” Mr Mokhothu said.
He added: “We sing the same song with BNP because we want to empower Basotho. We work like that with Dr Phamotse and Mr Mojapela and Mohlominyane Tota (Deputy leader of UFC)”.
Mr Mokhothu said UFC deputy-leader Mohlominyane Tota, had defied the party’s founding leader Ms Lekhoaba’s directive to support the government. Mr Tota was therefore voting with the opposition.
Mr Tota has been siding with the opposition after he declared he would not follow the directive to support the government.
“He was looking for something better for the nation, not to be given crumbs that fall from the table of the rich people,” Mr Mokhothu said.
Mr Mofomobe said they were forging political bonds through sports. Sports united people, hence sporting tournaments formed part of their initiatives designed to unite the Basotho nation, he said.
“We often have meetings with the DC leader, and he would say to me, according to the politics of Lesotho if you are not a BNP member, you are a congress member,” Mr Mofomobe said.
“It is a norm that BNP and congress are often at loggerheads. We want to end that…”
