Senkatana set to elect new leadership

MASERU — Breakaway political party, Senkatana, will hold its first general conference to elect a substantive leadership in Maseru next Friday.
Senkatana broke away from the main opposition All Basotho Convention (ABC) party led by Thomas Thabane in December 2008.
The party’s leader, Lehlohonolo Ts’ehlana, was kicked out of the ABC for alleged insubordination after he vehemently protested against Thabane’s leadership style.
The conference comes 13 months after Ts’ehlana promised to hold an elective conference to elect a substantive leadership of the party.
“We are going to have the first elected executive committee of the party. The interim committee was nominated at the inception of the party while we were still preparing for the general conference to elect the executive committee.
“All positions within the executive committee are open for contest including the position of the leader of the party,” Ts’ehlana said.
Ts’ehlana said he was planning to contest for the leadership of the party at the conference. He said he was not aware if there were any individuals who were also eyeing the same post.
“So far I have not heard of anybody who wishes to contest the position of the leader of the party.
“But I cannot say for sure that the seat will remain uncontested at the conference because we are still waiting for recommendations from the constituencies.
“If someone is recommended he or she will be on the contesting list.
“But I can only tell you that I am going to stand for election as the leader of the party,” Ts’ehlana said.
Ts’ehlana said the party was also expected to come up with its official position on the controversial Land Bill that is before parliament.
He said the party had not yet adopted a position on the Bill and would only do so after the party conference next Friday.
He said the party will also review its constitution at the conference as the current constitution was only drafted for purposes of registering the party at the Law Office.
Ts’ehlana said Senkatana will contest the forth-coming local government elections scheduled for April.
“We are going to set strategies to contest the forth-coming local government elections.
“These elections will help us gauge our political support in preparation for  national elections in 2012,” Ts’ehlana said.
Senkatana became Lesotho’s 22nd political party when it was registered with the Independent Electoral Commission in 2008.
But political observers say the party has generally failed to make an impact on Lesotho’s political scene with most of its political rallies being poorly attended.