Knives out for Deputy Speaker

 
MASERU-THE Deputy Speaker, Teboho Lehloenya, could lose his job by next Monday.
This comes after Tumahole Lerafa, a Democratic Congress (DC) MP, filed a motion to boot out Lehloenya.

The motion, filed on Tuesday this week, was seconded by the All Basotho Convention (ABC)’s Monkoe James Maime. Procedurally, it has to take three days before being read in Parliament.
Lerafa, the Motete MP, said the motion will be heard on Monday in Parliament.

Lerafa said the motion reached Parliament’s business committee yesterday.
Lerafa said he wants Lehloenya removed because “his party (Alliance of Democrats) is no longer in government so he should also leave the position”.
He said the deputy speaker’s position is political.
He said Lehloenya repeatedly failed to control the House.

“There is usually chaos because he always breaks procedures,” Lerafa said.
“He would sometimes boot people out of the House for issues which are not parliamentary.”
He said also “did a mess” during the recent election of parliament’s business committee.

“The committee’s election is based on the proportion of parties but he erred from the first step when he picked just one MP from the DC and two from each party in government at the time.”
“The ABC has more seats in parliament than any other party but Lehloenya ignored that. I even stood up to oppose what he did.”
Lerafa said Lehloenya “works in the interests of his party so he has to leave”.

Last night Lehloenya said he would not comment on the allegations against him “because the Speaker does not speak to the media”.
He said it is the Clerk of Parliament who should explain the procedures.
He said the MPs filing the motion against him were “putting a horse before the cart”.

“I deal with issues within Parliament and as I have said the Speaker does not speak,” Lehloenya said.
“But if those are their reasons then I do not want to comment on them.”
Meanwhile, AD spokesman Thuso Litjobo said the party is not surprised by the motion because they already knew of the plot to push out Lehloenya.
He said the AD will use its numbers in Parliament to defeat the motion.

“Whoever filed the motion will begin to see that we have the numbers, both from the opposition and the government,” Litjobo said.
“The Deputy Speaker is removed with a simple majority while the Speaker is removed with a two-thirds majority.”

Majara Molupe