Mohloai Mpesi
LESOTHO Mounted Police Service (LMPS) acting boss, Dr Mahlape Morai, has established a team to probe police officers involved with Famo gangs fuelling heinous crimes across the country.
The main goal of that intelligence team is to identify LMPS officers who are allegedly working with the rival Famo gangs, supplying them with weapons, and fuelling violent crimes that have seen the murders of hundreds of innocent civilians. The lawless Famo groups have been central to the criminality besieging Lesotho. Their heinous nature came to the fore once again in the cold-blooded mass killing of five members of one family in Fobane, Leribe, in an apparent revenge killing more than a week ago.
Their activities have seemingly been left unchecked for too long.
Dr Morai is determined to change that. The aim of the team she has established is to help the LMPS identify and deal decisively with its errant officers, allegedly ensnared in the Famo activities.
Dr Morai, who was appointed acting commissioner on 29 February 2024, for three months, spoke to Lesotho Times (LT) political reporter, Mohloai Mpesi, in an exclusive interview from her office at the LMPS headquarters in Maseru, this week.
She made it categorically clear police officers working with the Famo gangs will not be tolerated in the service.
Excerpts:
LT: You are the second female Commissioner of Police after ‘M’e Malejaka Letooane. What are the challenges that you face in your line of duty as COMPOL?
Dr Morai: The primary challenge is gangsterism, which creates a breeding ground for a lot of criminal activities. Last night (Sunday) we had a report of three deaths. It was specified that the murders were committed by members of blanketed Famo groups. For me it is a challenge.
Although it is a challenge because it is a crime, it is a challenge that the nation should see it for what it is: a challenge for us all. If there are five people viciously killed, it attracts everyone’s attention, not only the police. We don’t want people to die. The police service was not established for law enforcement officers to just sit there and be surprised by crime. They are there to prevent crime.
So, one can see that we are unable to prevent these famo killings. For some reason, they are beyond us. I think that is the biggest challenge we have.
Also, the limited budget that we have. The police budget is very small. If we had a good budget, I would have some trainings. I would have already established an intelligence team because one of the things that we need…talking about the Famo gangs, is that if we had strong intelligence in the police force, we would know where they are, when and what plans they have.
So, right now our intelligence is weak. We need a robust intelligence team, not only for investigative support but also for our management so that we know how much of capacity we need at which specific place. Intelligence helps on management, administrative work and on investigative support.
Above all, we need to change the narratives that society has about the police. For the longest time, the police service is the most hated profession. That narrative should change.
Some people have hated us since 1970, they don’t even realise that there are changes. There’s a lot of things improving in the police. Yes, there are some bad things here and there, but these people (police officers) are trying.
We need to change that narrative, to rebrand the LMPS’s image. The transformation should be drastic, so much that when we say we are Lepolesa, Mothusi, Motsoalle “a police officer, helper and friend” people should believe us.
The Basotho nation has lost hope in the police. I think they should give us a chance so that we prove ourselves because according to me, we are trying.
One of the issues which is not even supposed to be a major challenge, is the inter collaboration of security agencies in terms of jurisdiction. We all know that but when we approach certain spaces and platforms, we want to act like we don’t know where my jurisdiction begins and ends. It is a challenge because I believe we need to be honest about what we are supposed to do.
Lesotho Correctional Service (LCS) knows what they have to do, and I don’t have to interfere in their operations. So, there are some unnecessary conflicts just because the other agency got inside the other’s territory. I think that is also a challenge.
LT: The LMPS has been accused of harbouring officers who are members of the blanketed Famo gangs. So worrying is the situation that police firearms are allegedly being used in heinous crimes by the Famo gangs. That has put a dent on the credibility of the LMPS. How do you hope to remedy that situation?
Dr Morai: I agree with you, although it is not only police officers who have joined Famo gangs. The entire country is embroiled in the Famo gangs who are perpetrating criminal activities and killing people. Famo is celebrated in Lesotho, crime is celebrated in Lesotho, and for me it needs to be given attention by everyone of us, not just the police.
Of course, the police are accused, rightfully so if they are members of blanketed Famo gangs. But we also must pay attention to all the sectors that contribute to ensuring that this thing ends.
We are running a project at the moment where our intelligence team is on the ground. We are working on rooting this thing out. We have identified police officers that are known to associate with these different groups. Some are known.
We are going to take strict measures on them, we don’t care whether one is holding a senior position or not, once we have the evidence, we will take action…We need to have tangible evidence on how they associate with them (Famo gangs) and what their contributions are so that we charge them based on hard evidence.
LT: Do you feel the three months you have been put in charge are ample enough time for you to turn the fortunes of the LMPS around?
Dr Morai: Even one week was enough because I don’t know what the person who gave me three months wants to achieve. Maybe they would have achieved their goal in three months. But as for management (and transformation) of the police, I don’t think it’s something that can be given three months.
If they wanted to see improvement on a specific aspect in the management or the administration of the police service, then they (perhaps) wanted it achieved (in those three months). So, for me I don’t think it’s a problem because I don’t know what they want to achieve in three months. So, for me I don’t think it’s a problem because I don’t know what they want to achieve in three months.
LT: Do you hope to be confirmed as substantive COMPOL?
Dr Morai: Yes, I do (while smiling), I am praying about it. It is my daily prayer; I hope to be confirmed soon.
LT: What is your vision for the LMPS? Give me one major thing that you would work to ensure that it is achieved during your time in office.
Dr Morai: It is to rebrand the image of the LMPS. To have a systematic and entire rebranding of the image of LMPS. The image of LMPS undoubtedly, has been tarnished in a lot of ways, negatively so. We must rebrand it. When I arrived in this office, what I noticed was that members of society think they are broken and let down by the police. But no one ever talks about how police themselves feel about how broken they are. They (police) are broken, they are damaged inside. There are a lot of things that are damaging the police.
Why do you think they are doing the things that they are doing to society? Why do you think they are not happy? Do you think if you are happy, you can ill-treat people? Do you truly think that if you are unhappy, you can give someone happiness?
Look at the police’s working conditions. Most of the police stations, like the Maseru Central Police, the environment they work in, do you think they are happy? Not just them, you go to Semonkong, a lot of places there are no decent police stations.
A lot of police officers don’t have uniform, they don’t have shoes. There are a lot of things that contribute to the brokenness of police officers. The police also need attention. If we want to rebrand the LMPS. We don’t just look at one group, we also look at the people that are providing the services, so that we also give them hope because once they are hopeful, they will give hope to society.
They are hard working people, and a lot of people don’t know how committed police officers are. You should have seen them during the elections carrying ballot boxes on donkey backs. There are a lot of police officers committed to their vows.
For me, when I assumed this office, I knew that I had to produce a healing effect to society in that we should meet with them, eyeball to eyeball and talk with them regarding the security that they deserve.
Right now, I am visiting different communities. Every week I am out doing awareness campaigns. We identify those problematic areas where there are a lot of murders, stock theft etc. And these things are now happening in the northern region of the country.
A lot of people think we don’t even investigate cases against police officers, they don’t think they can be charged. Police officers can also be investigated, disciplined or charged criminally. We do that all the time.
If you see a police officer involved in criminal activities, report them. I always encourage people to report police officers who are embroiled in crimes. I don’t owe anyone anything.
LT: You are the caretaker of a police service that is notorious for being incompetent and murderous. Lesotho is now number two on the global homicidal scales, primarily because the police don’t seem to have the ability to contain crime. Still, how do you hope to reverse this situation and turn the fortunes of the LMPS around?
Dr Morai: We have records of police officers whom we are investigating. We have those that are scheduled for disciplinary hearings for criminal activities like murder, robbery, and others. We have 90 that are charged with criminal offences in our records. These are cases dating back from 2016 to March 2023.
There are no emerging cases of criminal charges against police officers from March to date. For a year now we haven’t had new cases of police officers that have been charged. That says there is an improvement because all districts have their databases which they share with the headquarters.
We have the Inspectorate Complaints and Discipline Unit. That office specialises in behaviour of police officers, discipline and complaints lodged against police officers.
Criminal and disciplinary cases relating to police officers are investigated and prosecuted. Police officers are fired, legal measures are taken against them.
LT: Why do police torture suspects in their custody? Is it due to deficiencies in their training, or perhaps absence of additional on-the-job training?
Dr Morai: Torture is not part of the training. Why should one choose torture? They have their own reasons why they torture suspects. I don’t know the reasons why police officers resort to torture. I haven’t yet established the reasons.
Even at the Police Training College (PTC) where I worked for the longest period in my career there is nowhere, where we teach recruits to beat people. What I know is that when one police officer graduates from the PTC and finds the others in the field torturing suspects, they join in. If you ask them why they are doing it, they will tell you it is because they found others doing it and joined them.
They don’t have reasons, but it is not in our training programmes.
Members of the public do not report. If police officers are not reported for using excessive force, they will continue because if not reported, no action is going to be taken against them.
Use of excessive force must be reported so that we act against the responsible police officers.
But right now, they are no longer beating people. They are tired, it’s just a few if they are still there. They get fired and many have lost their jobs for torturing suspects.
LT: Would you say there’s adequate training for the police, to know how to interrogate suspects without applying excessive force?
Dr Morai: If you remember we talked about a limited budget of the police which is limiting the ability of the organisation. We don’t have money to train police officers due to the low budget.
We need to have refresher training programmes, even if it is not only about interviewing technics. Training programmes generally must be done in the institution to refresh and reenergise police officers so that they gain new skills.
Famo gangs were not this popular when I left LMPS (for the Police Complaints Authority). Right now, they are out of hand. We ought to have been above them, but they are now beyond us. Our budget must be enhanced to ensure that we reenergise and refresh police officers.
LT: Police seem not to be doing much about fighting drug dealing in Lesotho. Fears are that Lesotho has become a drug haven. What do you have to say on that?
Dr Morai: We are educating communities about the dangers of drug dealing and abuse. After getting intelligence we raid places where they are sold. The challenge is that these drugs, like crystal meth, it is powder like, so it becomes difficult to arrest them because before we get there, if they are tipped off that we are coming, the flush it away.
The tricky part with drugs is that when I charge you for possession of and dealing with drugs, I must find you in possession of those drugs. I must have evidence that this is what I found in your possession.
The painful thing is that parents who have established groups have come here crying that their children are being killed by drugs. When you want to help them, they become reluctant as they don’t want their relationships with their children to deteriorate further.
How do you go about assisting people in such situations? Parents don’t do drugs but their children do. So, they feel like their children are going to be embarrassed when they are handed over to the police. We don’t even charge them. We give them assurance that we will not charge them. We have a counselling unit here. We provide counselling services for addicted children.
The major concern here, is whether parents take care of their children after the counselling sessions because we can’t keep them forever. Most of the parents are reluctant for their kids to come out. It does not do them justice when they hide their children.
We are doing all that we can, honestly. They (parents) even tell us where the drug lords are. Those we have raided, and we also know people that are selling. The police are involved and many other people. We have conducted investigations in that regard. Just that we don’t have a finished product of a report, tangible and fit enough to arrest one with. But we have leads of people involved.
